Why a Big Mac Costs Less than a Salad

[Ian David]

The chart was put together by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, but its figures still, alas, look quite relevant. Thanks to lobbying, Congress chooses to subsidize foods that we’re supposed to eat less of.

Of course, there are surely other reasons why burgers are cheaper than salads. These might include production costs, since harvesting apples is probably more naturally seasonal than slaughtering cows (even though both are in demand year-round). Transportation and storage costs might also play a role, as it’s probably easier to keep ground beef fresh and edible for extended periods of time, by freezing it, than cucumbers.

Whatever the cause of the pricing change, there is little doubt that many healthful foods have gotten much more expensive relative to unhealthful ones. David Leonhardt showed this in another remarkable chart, published here last year, that displays how the prices of different food groups have changed relative to their pricing 30 years ago:



More:
http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/09/why-a-big-mac-costs-less-than-a-salad/

Hat-tip to: http://twitter.com/Feministe/status/10239794523

[NoNothing]

1. Very interesting

Obviously subsidies probably play a role in the decline in prices of certain foods, but what I wonder is what is driving the increase in fruit and vegetable prices in particular? Could this be a side effect of the increasing popularity of "organic" produce?

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

2. Test aside (that is a personal preference) ... Value.

What has more nutritional value? Vegetables, organic, and all natural foods, of course. This is why they cost more... they have more value to the consumer. If something has value to a consumer, it only makes sense that the item will be optimally priced to take optimum advantage of the value.

For example, if you tax the unhealthy foods (or stop their subsidies) the price of those unhealthy choices will rise. Independant of the price of healthy and unhealthy choices, healthy choices have more intrinsic value to customers. Therefore, the healthy food could be priced hair higher than the unhealthy choice and still retain adequete demand. Taste aside (as that is personal opinion), if healthy options were priced cheaper than unhealthy options, the unhealthy options would largely dissapear from the market. But this would never happen as the makers of health food would have to purposefully price their items BELOW the market value.

So the answer is quite simple: healthy food is more valuable.

[ananda]

3. Because it's made out of shit basically?

nt

[KansDem]

4. It's amazing how much crap we pay for with our taxes...

It's bad enough we subsidize crappy food but now we may subsidize crappy health-care insurance to have "health care" to counter the ill-health effects of the crappy food...

[Bitwit1234]

5. In the Iron Range of Minnesota

you only get a handful of any greens, (that they might have). Say about 7 -8 stalks and usually 1.49 cents. Back on the East Coast you could get a whopping bag full for 1.00. How come greens are so high. You told to eat of lot of them but couldn't afford enough to make for dinner.

[harkadog]

8. Far higher distribution costs in that area than the East coast.

Far more people on the east coast drives the cost down and the distribution networks are more efficient.

[Jkid]

6. Abolish subsides for unhealthy food

Problem solved.
　

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

7. That won't solve anything without price fixing healthy food.

[rve300]

9. Economy of scale, supply and demand.

The demand for a Big Mac is huge compared to a salad. That alone makes it cheaper to produce. That may also explain the large difference in subsidy money. I would guess that every serving of meat and dairy is subsidized at the same percentage as every serving of fruit and vegetables.

[maxsolomon]

10. Frozen Yam Fries @ Costco are cheaper per lb. than

raw Yams @ any grocery in Seattle.

there is little motivation for Murkins to change (yet).

[superduperfarleft]

11. Costco memberships cost money.

Bulk purchases require some sort of transportation in order to get it from the store to the home (ever try to carry 10 lbs of rice home on the bus?).

[maxsolomon]

13. well, yes, but not my point

the point was that processed food is cheaper than raw food. PLENTY of poor people shop at Costco, and they all come in their cars.

[JoeyT]

12. Wanna know something that will piss you off even more?

Corn is a grain, so most of the grain subsidies are probably corn based.

[eppur_se_muova]

14. ... and is used as cattle feed, so it's really a beef subsidy. nt

[eppur_se_muova]

15. Rifkin's "Beyond Beef" still a good read today.

Would be nice to see an updated edition.

http://www.foet.org/books/beyond-beef.html

[NYC_SKP]

16. kick. nt

[mod mom]

17. New ways to find cuts to pay for HC