Quit Whinging About Rising Food Prices – It’s Your Fault Anyway

It’s a subject that is rarely far from the headlines and it affects pretty much everyone to some degree but having a moan because food costs more than it used to is rather hypocritical because you have to take some of the blame yourself.

While you may be able to turn your back on rising seas or animal extinctions caused by deforestation, food price inflation is one consequence of a warming climate that you are already facing and will continue to face for the foreseeable future.

And you know what – I hope it opens your eyes.

For too long the population at large has been apathetic to climate change and its effects but the truth is: extreme (and unexpected) weather events are likely to become more commonplace and there will be more frequent and severe water shortages in some parts of the world. This makes growing food more difficult and more expensive.

And because our diets are now so international in terms of their country of origin, it won’t matter so much how the UK farming industry copes because that broccoli in your basket from Kenya or Asparagus from Peru shows just how much we rely on imports of food.

And please stop blaming governments for bread being more expensive – they have no direct influence over the price of commodities. If you want to point the finger at someone, do a 180 with it and point it back at yourself. You contribute more than your fair share to climate change so it’s partly your fault that food prices are rising.

Blame yourself for keeping your money in banks that gamble on the price of food staples, blame yourself for driving the half mile to town when you could have just as easily walked, blame yourself for having multiple foreign holidays a year, blame yourself for being a typical western ‘over-consumer’ buying things you don’t really need and blame yourself for not pushing governments to do more (when was the last time you voted Green?)

Oh and did you know that what you eat does itself impact climate change and by cutting down on meat (particularly red meat), cheese and other dairy products and by saying no to air freighted produce (that asparagus still haunts me) you can do something that can realistically help to reduce the impacts of climate change?

In other words, I am glad that food prices are rising because it might just be the jolt that brings you around to the realities of climate change. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and do something about it.

And yes, before you even say it, I am no saint either – I have been gradually reducing my carbon footprint but I still enjoy a burger or steak once in a while albeit less often than I used to. I’m not pointing the finger of blame at anyone but myself and I have to just deal with the consequences of my actions – I suggest you do too.

P.S. I realise that climate change is not the only factor in rising food prices – it’s just the one I am choosing to highlight here.

Steve (156 Posts)

I am chief writer and editor on Green Steve. Blogging since 2011, I like to delve into a wide number of topics to help people reduce their carbon footprint. You should follow me on Twitter here. And add me to your Google+ circles here.

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