The Cost Of Produce

[The Ironic Chef]

I understand that food cost had to go up due to the cost of diesel and fuel that was needed for transportation of food items. I know they had to bring up produce prices but I think that the grocerey stores are taking it to an extreme.

Lately I have just been so disgusted in the produce section of our grocery store. I can not believe the prices.

A head of Iceberg lettuce- 3.00
A cucumber- 1.00
Green Bell Peppers- 3.49 a pound. That's 1 good sized pepper.
Potatoes- 4.00 for a 5lb bag
Apples- 3.50 for a 5lb bag
Tomatoes- 3.69 a pound
Grape Tomatoes- 2.89 for a pint.
Boston Bib Lettuce- 1.50 a head
Romain Lettuce-A pack of 3- almost 4.00.
A Cantaloupe- 2.30

That is just for starters.
I grew up on a farm. I know that prices have gone up through the years but this is outrageous. We grew most of the items I listed and we sold them for a whole lot less. For example, a 50 lb bag of potatoes sold for about 5.00. I am thinking that with inflation a farmer now would make 10.00-15.00. We sold tomatoes, 10.00 a bushel, the same for bell peppers. Cantaloupes for .25. Cucumbers for a nickle. a dozen ears of corn for a dollar. Ten years hasn't made that much of a difference in the farmers pocket. Who is making all the profit from the sale of produce in the grocery store chains?

Before to long people won't be able to prepare a simple salad for a meal. I would suggest that everyone learn to garden. Grow as much as you can. The items you grow will taste so much better than what you can buy in the store anyway.

[Cook Chatty Cathy]

You won't be disappointed! The quality and taste and freshness of homegrown can not be touched For Any Price, not to mention the self satisfaction and fun of growing your own food!

[jfain]

I actually think this is the way we will have to go. I've been growing my own garden for several years now and I find it saves quite a bit of money. This year I'm going to diversify even more I think. I also love to grow my own because I can grow beautiful heirloom vegetables.

[Mama Mangia]

Face it- they are raping us and laughing in our faces! And if you take a real good look at their produce - it's third rate and half rotted.

And you have to watch - it's not the season for homegrown in many areas - so these buyers for the stores are making "deals" and (for instance) purchasing large quantities of lettuce and they are freezing it for future sales.

When I was a kid - a bag of potatoes would last - now they rot in a couple days.

Nothing lasts anymore. And I don't even want to hear about those green bags - who knows what the hell they are made of anyway - plastics are not good for us.

Eventually all food will be rotting on the store shelves because no one will be able to afford it. The stores should get stuck with it - consumers should not pay for anything half rotten, going stale or near an expiration date.

[jglass]

Produce is worse here at the two grocery stores in town. I still have green and red bell peppers in the freezer from the past garden. They are so expensive in the store I just can hardly afford them fresh. Like Mama said most of what they offer for sale is hideous anyway. I have already started buying seeds for my herbs in the garden this year.
Sams is actually the best place to get salad and tomatoes. You can get a huge plastic container of spring mix greens for less than one small bag costs every where else. Their grape and cherry tomatoes are the only ones I buy in the winter months because they have a decent flavor. The nearest Sams to us is about 50 miles there and back so I dont get over there more than every 3 months or so. But when I do I stock up on spring mix, tomatoes and olive oil.

[Cook Chatty Cathy]

I think the bad economy may be a blessing in disguise, if we all return to our roots!!!! Farming, growing veggies, raising chickens, and hey if we own a little land even a cow or two, maybe a few piggies and a couple of sheep and goats!!! Home grown milk and meat..OH MY GOODNESS how delicious!!!

[The Ironic Chef]

Gardening is in my blood. The year I don't have a garden is the year I will die.
I believe that gardening and cooking go hand in hand.
I don't have the large pieces of property I have had in the past but I do have enough to grow a hundred or so different tomato varieties. I also grow several different types of peppers, horseradish, rhubarb, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, beans, peas, carrots, thyme, rosemary, dill, mint, basil,cilantro, cucumbers,melons, strawberries and have grape and raspberry vines that are a few years old. I am seriously thinking of getting a dwarf orchard.
I can up probably close to 50 quarts of tomatoes and homemade sauce every fall. I make probly 30 pints of homemade salsa. A few years back I was given a pressure canner for a present and have been able to can fruits during the appropriate seasons. I haven't tried to can meats, soups or gravies yet. It works well for beans and carrots too. I want to do more research on canning meat products before I attempt it.

We also grow a wide variety of flowers.

[Cook Chatty Cathy]

CanMan gave us a great link to a canning site I will try and find it for you and pull it up. Canning is fabulous, and I for one prefer home-canned veggies over frozen!

[jfain]

Home canned vegetables really are much better than the cans at the store. My grandmother used to can all sorts of fruits and veggies. I loved them all. I make some jellies and pickles for canning and mostly freeze my veggies though. I would love to be able to do all that canning but it's hours of work to do it the way she did and I just don't have that much time.

[jglass]

Around here feed for animals has gone up dramatically. My FIL had tossed around the idea of growing beef or raising some piggies but feed is to expensive. People are practically giving away horses because they cannot afford hay and feed. He buys feed for the grandkids three horses and he says it just keeps getting higher. Luckily a fried of theirs raises hay and cuts them a pretty good deal when his comes in but that is only a couple times a year.