RefBan

Referral Banners

Yashi

Monday, November 28, 2011

Moneybox: Turkeynomics

Slate Magazine
Now playing: Slate V, a video-only site from the world's leading online magazine. Visit Slate V at www.slatev.com.
Moneybox
Turkeynomics
Why has the price of turkey been rising?
By Matthew Yglesias
Posted Tuesday, Nov 22, 2011, at 11:12 PM ET

In case dealing with your extended family isn't enough of a hassle, here's more bad news: As part of America's general economic malaise, a Thanksgiving turkey is growing more expensive. In fact, we appear to have suffered a Lost Decade of Turkey.

Economists have long known that the public assumes inflation is higher than it really is. This is especially true when it comes to food, as we bitterly remember price hikes but forget times when pasta and milk and steak became more affordable. (Israel, for example, was shaken this summer by enormous protests over the rising price of cottage cheese.)

In the case of turkey, the gripers are justified: The birds have been getting more expensive for years. November price data aren't complete yet, and personal income data for October aren't available, but we can compare Septembers to get a sense of things. Back in September 2001, annual per capita disposable income was $27,147, and a whole turkey cost $1.162 per pound. (None of these numbers has been adjusted for inflation, so as to isolate turkey inflation from larger price trends.) At this price, the average American could have bought 23,000 pounds of frozen turkey if for some crazy reason she wanted to. Nominal turkey prices bounced around for the next several years while per-capita disposable income increased, meaning that by September 2006, your hypothetical glutton could afford more than 29,000 pounds of frozen turkey.

The National Bureau of Economic ...

To continue reading, click here.

Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum
What did you think of this article?
POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES

Also In Slate

Gov. Brownback Snitches on a Teenager Because of Her Sassy Tweet at Him


"I Didn't Mean To Stomp My Opponent": The Four Types of Lies in Pro Football


Can an Unelected Emergency Manager Run This Michigan City Better Than Its Mayor?

Advertisement


Manage your newsletters subscription: Unsubscribe | Forward to a Friend | Advertising Information


Ideas on how to make something better? Send an e-mail to slatenewsletter@nl.slate.com.

Copyright 2011 The Slate Group | Privacy Policy
The Slate Group | c/o E-mail Customer Care | 1350 Connecticut Ave NW Suite 410 | Washington, D.C. 20036


No comments:

Yashi

Chitika