Inflation snapshots: December 2009

[LargoWinch]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

I used to walk in front of this very man in the picture almost everyday (I have now moved from the area he used to ask people for money).

Have a look at the sticker of the bank's door behind the man: CDIC.

That must make me a half-celebrity by now no?

[lektrode]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

mr K: same with lays: a couple/3 (?could be 4or5 now) years ago the big bag was 13oz, and cost 2.99 out here
by 2 years ago the weight had 'deflated' to 11oz that cost 3.99
now its 10.5oz for 5.39 (and more of the chips are all bust up vs maybe 1/2bag of whole purrfect, crispy, healthy goodness - and i say healthy because lays have only 3 ingredients: potato, veg oil and salt)
but the retailers cant usualy get that much for them, typical price is 2for6or7 or BOGO (buy1get1, safeways typical deal)

but here's another, perhaps more subtle example: anybody familiar with a wood preservative called Jasco? they make/made several flavors of this stuff, one of the better products available - hadnt bought any since 2008, when it was 21+/gal for the 'termin-8 green' stuff (active ingredient = copper naphthenate, 25%, in an oily base) - so... apparently they sold themselves to the blackflag corp and now the stuff is same 21+/gal, BUT the active is now 9% and its a water-base - dunno how well it will work, but just seems that something thats used for water/fungus proofing would be better oily based, never mind cutting the active component by nearly 60%? - oh and the 25% stuff warned about severe but TEMPORARY eye damage, while the weaker brew talks about IRREVERSEABLE eye damage -so, aside from being more enviro-mentally correct, just HOW is this product 'better' while the active ingredient is about 2/3 the strength ?

CDIC?

[Kadriana]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

My mother-in-law brought out pop today at her house and they're 1.5 liter bottles. Apparently 2 liter bottles are being phased out.

[Milton Kuo]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

mr K: same with lays: a couple/3 (?could be 4or5 now) years ago the big bag was 13oz, and cost 2.99 out here

Yes, the Lay's potato chips are products of Frito-Lay, who are also the makers of Doritos. I'd be willing to bet money that the packages for all of Frito-Lay's salty snacks contain less product than they did a few years ago.

but here's another, perhaps more subtle example: anybody familiar with a wood preservative called Jasco?
(active ingredient = copper naphthenate, 25%, in an oily base)
- so... apparently they sold themselves to the blackflag corp and now the stuff is same 21+/gal, BUT the active is now 9% and its a water-base

Copper has more than tripled in the past decade and crude oil has more than quadrupled. I guess the company that sells this product feels that it is better to alter the formulation of the product and roughly maintain its selling price rather than raise the price to reflect the higher raw materials costs to produce according to the original formula.

You bring up an interesting point: Is the new formulation as effective and as good as the older formulation? [My gut feeling is, "No."] It is this paranoia about the disappearance of quality that has me buying all sorts of durable goods that I don't urgently need. I'm not so much worried about prices going higher as I'm worried that there may come a day that high-quality goods will no longer be available at any sane price.

One more data point to end this posting. I bought some 100% cotton articles of clothing in March of this year for $19.50. Earlier this month, I bought the exact same articles of clothing and the cost had risen to $21.50 -- a 10% rise in prices in nine months. I bought directly from the manufacturer so it should be reasonable to assume the prices are higher strictly due to raw materials costs.

Cotton spiked in March of this year to $210/pound before falling to $90/pound now; it spent the bulk of 2010 at around $80/pound until August when it started its run-up to its March 2011 peak. Just a guess on my part but it seems the spike coincides in time with Quantitative Easing II. Even though cotton prices seem to be roughly where they were in 2010, I'd be very surprised if the selling prices for the clothing I bought return to $19.50.

[LargoWinch]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

And so it continues...

Orville Redenbacher Is The Latest Victim Of The Grocery Shrink Ray

[lektrode]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

has canned tuna made it onto this one (not sure when it happened, but werent there 6oz in em, once upon a time)?
that and haagen-daz coming in 14oz 'pints' (that have additionally been jacked up by 40% while decreasing in qty)

at this rate, methinks we'll all be vegans perty quick
can hardly wait for 10oz budweisers... (since the ole '1/2 gal' jug of the good, i mean, hard stuff went obsolete years ago ;)

[llanlad2]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

download.jpg


The above is not your typical Beef Lasagne!


I'm not sure if this is a case of inflation or just fraud. But it has been highlighted that before raising prices companies cut costs.
Well in the UK this year this has gone to extremes with supposed Beef burgers actually containing horse and pig meat instead. Lots of supermarket products have been affected.

The most extreme example: The beef in the above beef lasagne was found to be 100% horse!

[globaleconomicollaps]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

[ATTACH=CONFIG]4587[/ATTACH]


The above is not your typical Beef Lasagne!


I'm not sure if this is a case of inflation or just fraud. But it has been highlighted that before raising prices companies cut costs.
Well in the UK this year this has gone to extremes with supposed Beef burgers actually containing horse and pig meat instead. Lots of supermarket products have been affected.

The most extreme example: The beef in the above beef lasagne was found to be 100% horse!

In France there is something of a fetish for horse meat. In the supermarket it sells for more than beef.

[GRG55]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

In France there is something of a fetish for horse meat. In the supermarket it sells for more than beef.

Apparently Icelanders need not worry. Even vegetarians can safely eat the "beef pie".

Iceland tests find meat pies contain no meat at all

Checking for horsemeat, food authorities get a strange surprise

The Associated Press
Posted: Mar 1, 2013 10:48 AM ET
Last Updated: Mar 1, 2013 5:54 PM ET

Here's one they weren't expecting — meat pies with no meat.

When officials in Iceland began hearing about horsemeat being secreted into beef products around Europe, they decided to run tests to ensure the same thing wasn't happening in Iceland.

Icelandic meat inspector Kjartan Hreinsson says his team didn't find any horsemeat, but one brand of locally produced beef pie left it stumped: it contained no meat at all...

[charliebrown]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

Add this to the list, My electricity contract expires April 30. It is currently 5.7c KWH, yes lektrode you read that right , New rate, same company same terms,
7.3c KWH. Note this does not include delivery charges, just supply charges. those are about 4c KWH. Also note that my supplier has won approval from the
icc to raise delivery charges in the future.

[BadJuju]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

My ground beef keeps going up in price.

[aaron]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

My ground beef keeps going up in price.

That cow's pound of flesh is buying more dollars. The value of your dollars is going down, not succulent grass-fed burgers going up -- Unless they taste even better than last year and with a proper hedonistic quality adjustment, you are actually paying less!

You eyes lie. Inflation is 1% and has been for a long time. I read it on the Internet.

I forgot I was supposed to take pictures. I have seen cereal boxes now that are 15 ounces instead of 16 ounces. In fact, I even can buy jugs of milk that are just under a gallon (of course for the whole gallon price).

[don]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

don't have the data but the paper towels are going fast, much faster than they used to . . .

(It's my job to replace the rolls, so I notice!)

[BadJuju]

Re: Inflation snapshots: December 2009

That cow's pound of flesh is buying more dollars.

I'll have to start selling some of my own flesh soon to buy it!