Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

bloomberg.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 605 posts

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#111

Post by simiones »

kungito wrote: post #88
rapnie wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The first happens in The Netherlands on large scale, since they deregulated job agencies. There are 1,000's of shady ones, where administratively all is fine and dandy, but in practice foreign labour is paid far below minimum wage + they are often threatened to not speak up, passport taken, etc. This, btw, happens all across the EU is my impression. Modern-day slavery very much alive globally even!

I've heard first hand about this happening in Denmark on a large scale as well. It's hard not believing the government knows about this but does nothing. I wouldn't call it slavery in this case because people come by buses from Poland and go back home after the work is done. They have their freedom of movement. It's just the origin countries are so much worse than the ones where they go to work

It's usually not even that they are so much worse. It's just that the monetary value differences make up the difference. These people can live a much better life in Poland with a Denmark subsistence wage, then they can in Poland with the minimum wage. So they sacrifice some months of their lives living in worse conditions in order to make some money for back home, where they can use that money to improve the lot of their children.

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#112

Post by [deleted] »

imutemyteam wrote: post #92
nelsonmandela wrote: post #37

Closed borders, no students/backpackers, farmers unprepared to pay minimum wages to Australians is resulting in a lot of produce being plowed back into the ground. I just don't know how this economy keeps rolling. How can farmers meet the payments on their loans? Reading 'The great depression: A diary' and looking at the world today just shocks the hell out of me. We are following it step for step and the crash is go…

I really doubt that the backpacker community was the major labor source in Australia.

[deleted]

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#113

Post by voisin »

jopsen wrote: post #6
cyberpsybin wrote: post #3

Here it comes. Cost of running money printer too hard.

Having we been giving much printed money to people who need more food? Most people in the western world aren't likely to buy more food, just because they have more money. Not saying, we won't see inflation, who knows, but I doubt we'll see it in household items.

Maybe not buy food directly for personal consumption but buying commodities is a possibility that becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy (like GameStop!). When all financial assets increase to all time highs and commodities don’t then speculators push them up to eliminate cross asset price disparities.

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#114

Post by josalhor »

bondarchuk wrote: post #105
octodog wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The snark in this comment is completely unnecessary. It is better for everyone if you make your point in a more constructive manner.

Rant incoming. I, for one, appreciate it. This thing on HN where you have to beat around the bush and phrase your sentences objectively and in a general way, when everybody knows that you are just talking about a specific instance, saying things like "if you [x] then someone may respond [y]" when it is clear that someone literally said [x] so you can just say [y] in reply.. All that stuff is incredibly tiring to read…

While I somewhat agree with the sentiment of your comment, one of the reasons I believe Hacker News is so civilized is because the arguments are always very rationalized. That is, it is easy to point out faulting logic.

Following up with your example: If someone simply states [y] then the context of where [y] came from is lost and the discussion turns into a person saying [x] and a person saying [y], which is a step too close to becoming Twitter.

While I agree it can sometimes be a bit tiresome to read and write, I say this significantly improves the overall quality of the conversations.

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#115

Post by danjac »

dbetteridge wrote: post #60
Cederfjard wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Am I interpreting this correctly that there’s a minimum wage that applies to Australians but not foreigners, and farmers thus rely on foreign labor? Edit: In Sweden we have/have had similar situations with temporary immigrants that for example pick berries for exploitative wages, but that’s because there’s no actual minimum wage per se - in the rest of society decent wages are ensured by strong unions (except in area…

More like. I'll pay you minimum wage, but charge you exorbitant amounts for board and lodging and you have no choice because it's the middle of nowhere. Or for the extra dodgy types, cash payments below minimum wage because they know international workers are less likely to know their rights and be aware of what the minimum wage is.

What Americans used to call the "company town".

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#116

Post by simonh »

refraincomment wrote: post #26
azalemeth wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the UK at least, it's very much due to new-found export (and import) restrictions. The price of food has slightly increased since brexshit, whereas its availability has plummeted: the number of varieties of vegetables stocked by my local Tesco, for example, has plummeted, and the stock sells out almost immediately after delivery.

How does Brexit even matter if border checks are suspended for imports? Just the usual scaremongering. I also shop at Tesco and the stocks haven't changed at all.

Oh I agree, what limitations on stock there are, are probably down to Covid and it being winter.

Still, why even have brexit if we're going to do our level best to pretend we're still in the EU as hard as we can. Is being subject to full export restrictions, hammering British businesses, while allowing many European goods to flow in un-checked really the brexit you signed up for?

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#117

Post by refraincomment »

simonh wrote: post #116
refraincomment wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How does Brexit even matter if border checks are suspended for imports? Just the usual scaremongering. I also shop at Tesco and the stocks haven't changed at all.

Oh I agree, what limitations on stock there are, are probably down to Covid and it being winter. Still, why even have brexit if we're going to do our level best to pretend we're still in the EU as hard as we can. Is being subject to full export restrictions, hammering British businesses, while allowing many European goods to flow in un-checked really the brexit you signed up for?

Brexit UK is a startup

EU is Oracle

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#119

Post by dguaraglia »

raul-pilla wrote: post #76
kingkawn wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You gotta feed people to be able to do the restructuring. Your logic is hollow to someone starving. Also impressive you’ve attempted to resurrect the idea of “civilizing” people.

So you're a proponent of the "give the fish" and not "teach to fish"? If the supplies flowing to them stop they starve again, so I am not sure you're right.

Strange thought for someone writing a reply on a message board using a device there's no way they could build from scratch.

We've structured society in a way that not everyone needs to be a farmer (or microchip designer/electronic factory line worker) for people to obtain food/devices that access the internet. Are you a proponent of 'give the fish' because you didn't build the device you are typing in?

Re: Food Prices Are Soaring Faster Than Inflation and Incomes

#120

Post by quintushoratius »

raul-pilla wrote: post #76
kingkawn wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You gotta feed people to be able to do the restructuring. Your logic is hollow to someone starving. Also impressive you’ve attempted to resurrect the idea of “civilizing” people.

So you're a proponent of the "give the fish" and not "teach to fish"? If the supplies flowing to them stop they starve again, so I am not sure you're right.

You can both give a person a fish, and at the same time teach them to fish as well. It is not, and never should have been presented as, an either/or argument.
Post reply on HN