Monterey, CA Farmers Expecting A Good Year, But Food Prices Won't Decline Until Later In The Year

View From A Non-Profit Serving Carmel, Carmel Valley, Gonzalez, Greenfield, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Salinas, Seaside And Soledad California

Farmers are expecting a big rise in yields this year despite a major drought across much of the country last year.  The bad news is, prices at the grocery store are expected to jump 3-4% over the coming year, according to the USDA Department of Agriculture.  However, the USDA is hoping that we will have good weather in the spring and summer which could bode well for lower prices later in the year.  If corn prices drop from the current $7.50 per bushel to about $5 (as the USDA is predicting), products with sweeteners in them could start to see prices flatten and possibly drop.  Chickens grow quickly, so this would likely be the first meat to show price declines following a decline in the cost of corn feed.  Pork would be next, likely dropping in the second half of 2014.  Meat and dairy product prices will take longer to decline and the USDA predicts we won't see lower prices in these categories until 2016.  Many low-income Americans are just having to make due with less, as gas prices increase, the payroll tax increase kicks in and the cost of core goods and services rise more quickly than inflation.

Please note that this blog reflects my personal opinion and may or may not reflect the opinion of Hands To Help Seniors and the individual members comprising the Board of Governors.