Say Anything Blog

And how much is the greedy oil company’s “excessive profit?”

About 10 cents on the dollar.

Fortunately Hillary is going to take their profist and use them for something useful.

Back in the ‘90s, the Farmers Union had a little promotion where they handed out loaves of bread, with a sticker: “5 cents.” The made the point that farmers only got a nickel’s worth of the revenues off a loaf of bread. (Yeah, here it is—in Ed Schultz’s book, no less.)

So now it’s 20 cents? Hell, they’re making progress.

North Dakota as an agricultural producer needs to move into the value added portion of agriculture and meat products. We ship the raw product out by the truck and train loads to distant cities so they can add the value, and the jobs, and the profits to their economy. We have the space, the climate, the transportation, the reasonable cost of power to do more; What we lack is investment money to upgrade our industry--it’s time our state leadership gets on a plan for longer term growth.

I dont think the point of the story was that farmers were complaining about only getting 20% of the cost of food, the point was that the cost of the farmers product, ie the grain, is not the main reason for higher food prices.

From later in the story than the section you posted.

‘‘Today’s high crop prices are being blamed for the rise in food costs,’’ Carlson said. ‘‘One myth is that the demand for renewable fuels has caused high corn prices, which in turn has led to higher food prices.

‘‘High energy costs, inflation, world markets and stock inventories are driving today’s food costs, not the prices farmers receive for their crops,’’ Carlson said.

"Gross margin” is a poor metric for what you are trying to describe, Rob.  “Net margin” is better, but when applied to national grocery retailers, that figure also wraps up the totals for other goods other than groceries.  The conventional figure for profit margins on actual food is 2%-3%.

Like halatbis said, producing commodities is a low-margin exercise.  Are silica sand miners getting raped if they sell a pound of sand for a dime (or whatever) and Tiffany, Fenton, or Murano make an objet d’art glass masterpiece that weighs a pound and sells for $500?  The two figures don’t compare well and these farmers know it.  I’d expect nothing different from an entitlement class that is no better than the ocean of welfare mothers pumping out future welfare moms and babydaddys.  Agricultural subsidies distort supply and amount to a tax on food.

Agricultural subsidies distort supply and amount to a tax on food.

Govt is a tax on the citizens, in everything it does.

If you don’t know by now, don’t mess with it.

IS the union getting it’s talking points from “big oil”? Funny how this works, isn’t it? Socialism “hurts” everyone, period!

I dont think the point of the story was that farmers were complaining about only getting 20% of the cost of food

Then why did they compare the current rate to the rate in the 1950’s?

“Gross margin” is a poor metric for what you are trying to describe, Rob.

I didn’t pick it as a metric.  I was responding to the numbers they brought up.

When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.

-- Thomas Jefferson

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