Comments on: Food Rationing http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html Financial independence, frugality, self-sufficiency, ecology, capitalism, and voluntary simplicity Sat, 06 Sep 2008 03:00:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.1 By: Gander at BigBrood http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html#comment-1111 Gander at BigBrood Tue, 29 Apr 2008 19:27:45 +0000 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/?p=213#comment-1111 While I'm not convinced about overpopulation I do remain convinced that we should try to minimize our impact on our resources (within reason). To this end, we are moving to buying more locally. This stimulates our local economy and also provides us with fresher food. If you're going to buy meat, buy it in bulk (ie: 1/2 to 1 cow at a time) from a local farmer and share it with others if you need. This really lowers the cost and keeps it local at the same time. I am also personally moving to a diet more reliant on beans and rice because I enjoy them, they're healthier, cheaper and just as filling as meat-based meals. I'm not on an extreme early retirement path, but I am on a happier path, lower impact and earlier retirement path. Thanks for the thoughts! While I’m not convinced about overpopulation I do remain convinced that we should try to minimize our impact on our resources (within reason). To this end, we are moving to buying more locally. This stimulates our local economy and also provides us with fresher food.

If you’re going to buy meat, buy it in bulk (ie: 1/2 to 1 cow at a time) from a local farmer and share it with others if you need. This really lowers the cost and keeps it local at the same time.

I am also personally moving to a diet more reliant on beans and rice because I enjoy them, they’re healthier, cheaper and just as filling as meat-based meals.

I’m not on an extreme early retirement path, but I am on a happier path, lower impact and earlier retirement path.

Thanks for the thoughts!

]]> By: yvie http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html#comment-1084 yvie Sun, 27 Apr 2008 13:09:21 +0000 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/?p=213#comment-1084 Cuba's life expectancy rate is very close to the US 76.2 compared to US to 77.1. Such a poor country yet they live almost as long as Americans. Cubans have problems of not enough food (or variety) and US has problems with too much food. I am very curious to see how this increase in food prices will play out. Will people eat lower on the food chain, opting for healthier beans instead of their T-bone steak? Will they plant gardens to grown healthy nutritious food or will they munch on cheap junk food with high calories? Time will tell. Cuba’s life expectancy rate is very close to the US 76.2 compared to US to 77.1.

Such a poor country yet they live almost as long as Americans.

Cubans have problems of not enough food (or variety) and US has problems with too much food.

I am very curious to see how this increase in food prices will play out.

Will people eat lower on the food chain, opting for healthier beans instead of their T-bone steak? Will they plant gardens to grown healthy nutritious food or will they munch on cheap junk food with high calories?

Time will tell.

]]> By: Heidi http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html#comment-1081 Heidi Sat, 26 Apr 2008 20:29:46 +0000 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/?p=213#comment-1081 Food rationing today in Cuba (per Wikipedia-so I can not guarentee it's accuracy) per person, per month along with subsidized price: Product Quantity Price (CUP) Rice 6 lb 0.70 / lb Beans 20 oz. 0.32 / lb White (refined) sugar 3 lb 0.15 / lb Dark (unrefined) sugar 3 lb 0.10 / lb Milk (only children under 7 years) 1 lt / day 0.25 / each Eggs (*) 12 0.15 each Potatoes/bananas 15 lb 0.40 / lb (*) Only from September through December. This doesn't mention how long you have to stand in line to get these items once they do become available or how inflated the black market prices are. We take for granted all we have in this country. The ability to get in my car and drive to the grocery and pick out anything I want to eat for dinner and have it cost less than I make in an hour... Or even more shocking, at a little over $20 per hour, even after taxes I make enough money to buy enough rice for roughly 150-175 people per day. We take for granted that food will always be there and it will be as cheap as it is now. I stockpile food. I have never in my life worried about where my next meal will come from, and I don't want to. I would hate to be starving and think back to this time of plenty and realize for the price of a cup of coffee, or soda out of the vending machine at work, I could have prevented going hungry for one day. Food rationing today in Cuba (per Wikipedia-so I can not guarentee it’s accuracy) per person, per month along with subsidized price:

Product Quantity Price (CUP)
Rice 6 lb 0.70 / lb
Beans 20 oz. 0.32 / lb
White (refined) sugar 3 lb 0.15 / lb
Dark (unrefined) sugar 3 lb 0.10 / lb
Milk (only children under 7 years) 1 lt / day 0.25 / each
Eggs (*) 12 0.15 each
Potatoes/bananas 15 lb 0.40 / lb
(*) Only from September through December.

This doesn’t mention how long you have to stand in line to get these items once they do become available or how inflated the black market prices are.

We take for granted all we have in this country. The ability to get in my car and drive to the grocery and pick out anything I want to eat for dinner and have it cost less than I make in an hour…

Or even more shocking, at a little over $20 per hour, even after taxes I make enough money to buy enough rice for roughly 150-175 people per day.

We take for granted that food will always be there and it will be as cheap as it is now.

I stockpile food. I have never in my life worried about where my next meal will come from, and I don’t want to. I would hate to be starving and think back to this time of plenty and realize for the price of a cup of coffee, or soda out of the vending machine at work, I could have prevented going hungry for one day.

]]> By: pidgeon92 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html#comment-1069 pidgeon92 Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:05:50 +0000 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/?p=213#comment-1069 When the government starts rationing food, maybe I'll be concerned. When warehouse clubs do it, it is not newsworthy. When the government starts rationing food, maybe I’ll be concerned. When warehouse clubs do it, it is not newsworthy.

]]> By: mysticaltyger http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html#comment-1067 mysticaltyger Fri, 25 Apr 2008 20:22:03 +0000 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/?p=213#comment-1067 I disagree with you on this one Jacob. I think most of the problems we have with food shortages are management problems. Governments regularly intervene in food markets with agricultural subsidies, creating all kinds of market distortions. The U.S. does a lot of this nonsense, but other countries are as bad or worse. Overpopulation is not the real problem we have in the world. Poor economic policies by the world's governments are the real problem. I disagree with you on this one Jacob. I think most of the problems we have with food shortages are management problems. Governments regularly intervene in food markets with agricultural subsidies, creating all kinds of market distortions. The U.S. does a lot of this nonsense, but other countries are as bad or worse. Overpopulation is not the real problem we have in the world. Poor economic policies by the world’s governments are the real problem.

]]> By: Seth Miller http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2008/04/food-rationing.html#comment-1066 Seth Miller Fri, 25 Apr 2008 15:13:38 +0000 http://earlyretirementextreme.com/?p=213#comment-1066 My wife and I just dropped milk about two weeks ago and switched to an oatmeal breakfast. Thanks for the inspiration. My wife and I just dropped milk about two weeks ago and switched to an oatmeal breakfast. Thanks for the inspiration.

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