The recent world oil price hikes are coming at a bad time as the region struggles to pull out of recession. Added to that is the prospect of spiking food prices, as was noted in the Lower Mainland media over the past weekend.
In the U.S,. produce prices have already gone up thanks, in part, to Mother Nature. Temperatures reached freezing points earlier this year, damaging crops in warmer climate areas like Florida, Texas, California, and Mexico.
The USDA reported recently that crops like tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and green beans were hit the hardest, raising their price tag three percent.The weather has also affected the price tag on cotton.
Global food prices rose 25 percent last year and it is predicted that food costs will rise as much as four per cent across the board in the U.S. this year.
Based on this information it would appear that the warnings should be taken seriously here.
One solution to rising food prices involves the creation of a strong local industry. Rising international prices should also be a signal to provincial policy makers of the urgent need to produce a viable agricultural policy for B.C. - one that makes sense for the type of farm operations here, and one that encourages and values agricultural production at all levels. That’s something that is debatably absent in this province at the present time
We believe that the need for a healthy agricultural sector has never been greater.
It’s time the province put their words into practice, and created agricultural policy that reflected that.
- The Review
