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The rising cost of food
BBC News Magazine ^ | Monday, 10 March 2008 | Finlo Rohrer

Posted on 03/10/2008 9:24:06 PM PDT by fishhound

Global stocks of wheat are plummeting and people are starting to worry about the price of staples like bread. But can you beat the commodity market by growing your own?

Look out your back window. How's the grass?

If you've got a garden at all, it might be that the grass is an unloved scrub as sparse as Elton John's hair used to be. Or it could be a lush strip of glorious verdure. Either way, the odds are you're not getting much use out of it. Wouldn't it be great if you could improve your health, help the environment and at the same time do your part to fight inflation?

The world is running dangerously low on wheat, one of civilisation's original staple foods. Drought in Australia and China and a switch to meat in the newly prosperous parts of the world are putting the squeeze on wheat. Prices are at a record high.

Baker and organic food campaigner Andrew Whitley believes the answer lies in your back garden and that it's time, as he puts it, to "bake your lawn". He is launching the Real Bread Campaign.

"If wheat makes bread why not grow bread just like you grow vegetables. We think of it as being a massive prairie-style enterprise but it is just a plant like anything else. It's like grass.

"There are few things that give greater satisfaction than being able to grow something and harvest it and share it with friends and family."

(Excerpt) Read more at news.bbc.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: growyourown; wheat
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This seems a stretch.
1 posted on 03/10/2008 9:24:08 PM PDT by fishhound
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To: fishhound

The thought of Elton John’s hair causes me to lose my appetite.


2 posted on 03/10/2008 9:27:24 PM PDT by BenLurkin
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To: fishhound

not enough land to make a huge difference
tomatoes, cukes, one thing, but growing wheat? Not enough soil.


3 posted on 03/10/2008 9:29:03 PM PDT by television is just wrong
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To: BenLurkin

author must be a fan.
what a bad metaphor.


4 posted on 03/10/2008 9:32:13 PM PDT by fishhound
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To: fishhound

Democrats DEMANDED for years that we put FOOD into our gas tanks. Now, they whine about rising fuel prices.

You just cannot win with these people...


5 posted on 03/10/2008 9:32:35 PM PDT by tcrlaf (VOTE DEMOCRAT-You'll look great in a Burka!)
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To: fishhound

Sounds like WWII Victory gardens! Stop using corn for bio fuel.


6 posted on 03/10/2008 9:33:34 PM PDT by Anti-Bubba182
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To: television is just wrong

Wheat is easy to grow but it isn’t easy to process and then bake your own bread.

I don’t know if the time is now but I’ve always said that farmers were going to get respect again someday.


7 posted on 03/10/2008 9:34:05 PM PDT by tiki (True Christians will not deliberately slander or misrepresent others or their beliefs)
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To: fishhound
Just smacks of the incremental de-evolution idiocy that's been going on for decades. They won't stop until we're living in holes and sponge bathing with rainwater
8 posted on 03/10/2008 9:35:20 PM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: tcrlaf

I think the dems would offer gas subsidy chits like gov cheese if they think it will get them voters.


9 posted on 03/10/2008 9:35:25 PM PDT by fishhound
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To: SpaceBar

“They won’t stop until we’re living in holes and sponge bathing with rainwater”

And don’t forget you will be ordered to turn in your matches.
Can’t have poor people living in cold holes while yours is well lit and warm making such a big carbon footprint. That would teach the children injustice!


10 posted on 03/10/2008 9:39:51 PM PDT by fishhound
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To: fishhound

You need some serious acreage to grow wheat.

By far, the best yielding crop there is also happens to be one of my favorites - good ol taters.

And if you have 3 foot by 3 foot piece of ground, you can grow enough lettuce to choak a goat - it’s a freakin weed!

Maters! Also easy to grow and good yields.

If you absolutely must have bread, buy some flour and yeast and figure out a way to freeze it.


11 posted on 03/10/2008 9:45:23 PM PDT by djf (She's filing her nails while they're draggin the lake....)
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To: djf

I did my taters in raised frames(2 levels) last year.
Just popped off the frames and didn’t have to dig much at all.

Know a guy whos daughter grows them in bails of hay or hay in a frame.


12 posted on 03/10/2008 9:51:32 PM PDT by fishhound
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To: fishhound

We don’t eat bread anymore. Husband is diabetic and can’t have carbs/starches/sugar. But we love growing our own veggies. Our tomato plants are doing well already.


13 posted on 03/10/2008 9:51:47 PM PDT by buffyt (Glowbull warming - Climate Change - the biggest hoax/fraud/deception of the 21st century.)
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To: fishhound

We can’t eat potaotes either! darn it


14 posted on 03/10/2008 9:52:14 PM PDT by buffyt (Glowbull warming - Climate Change - the biggest hoax/fraud/deception of the 21st century.)
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To: fishhound

bring on higher food prices; food subsidies have kept the price of food too low, and we have a nation where even our poorest are overweight.


15 posted on 03/10/2008 9:55:23 PM PDT by socalgop
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To: buffyt

Your husband must have a very serious type of diabetes.

I know that planning out diet is difficult with this.


16 posted on 03/10/2008 9:57:04 PM PDT by fishhound
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To: fishhound

Were screwed. Basic bread is almost up 300% here. and no you cant make it cheaper.

The only answer is to use food for food vice ethanol.
Lets get drilling and build some pebble bed reactors


17 posted on 03/10/2008 9:57:52 PM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
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To: tcrlaf
"You just cannot win with these people..."

It's all about submission, domination, control and destruction.

Every enemy of common, loving sense has used different tactics, but desired the same result .. absolute power.

No different than Satan in the bible, the people building the tower and etc.

Draw your own conclusion(s)

We have the TM to repair this.

18 posted on 03/10/2008 9:58:19 PM PDT by knarf (I say things that are true ... I have no proof ... but they're true.)
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To: All

Cut out the middle man bakery. Easiest bread to make is tortillas, both flour and corn, plus Indian Fry Bread. Settlers in this country lived on Indian Fry Bread for years. Dessert was Indian Fry Bread with sugar and cinnamon or with honey.


19 posted on 03/10/2008 9:59:05 PM PDT by Marcella (Will work in my rose garden (with wine) and not listen to McCain.)
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To: socalgop

“and we have a nation where even our poorest are overweight.”

I see that and it really makes me wonder. I think some people eat a lot of preservative filled crap.


20 posted on 03/10/2008 10:00:24 PM PDT by fishhound
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