city club missoula

Chewing on the Rising Costs of Food

By Ryan Thompson, 9-16-08

Locally produced food needs more support and a greater infrastructure to achieve lower prices, a panel of speakers said at City Club Missoula’s forum in the Doubletree Hotel on Monday.

With the economy’s current slump, the rising prices of both locally and non-locally produced food was a key theme of the discussion.

“I think we are rapidly approaching peak prices for everything,” said panelist Josh Slotnick, an instructor in the University of Montana’s Program in Ecological Agriculture and co-owner of Clark Fork Organics.

Slotnick cited different reasons for increasing food costs, including the high cost of fuel to transport food and even the influence of natural disasters such as Hurricane Ike. Ultimately, the need for more locally grown food comes from global pressures, Slotnick said.

“Cheap oil and international goods will have held up the cheap food service…Both of these are becoming more scarce,” Slotnick said. “I believe we will and should begin producing more of what we need closer to home.”

Panelist Crissie McMullan, a member of Grow Montana, a coalition of groups which works to support community agriculture in Montana, said the country needs to rebuild its infrastructure for growing and processing local food, suggesting measures such as tax incentives for food processors to use Montanan products.

“Right now we lack the infrastructure we need for the local food system to survive,” McMullan said.

The panel also featured Ron Zellar, Information Specialist and Projects Coordinator at the Montana Department of Agriculture, and Vernie House, an agricultural economist who has taught at numerous universities and worked as extension economist at Montana State University.

The economy’s effect on food production was prominent throughout each speaker’s presentation.

“Food prices have jumped all over the place because stocks are low,” House said.

After the presentations, the audience discussed food problems and asked questions of each speaker while dining on locally-grown fare.

When asked at what point local food will cost the same as globally distributed food, Slotnick pointed out that local food is in fact cheaper in some areas, citing California eggs as an example.

“It’s not always more expensive,” McMullan said. “You can buy in bulk or be a member of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).”

However, with local food prices still prohibitive for many, she said that the needed changes must begin on the individual level and transfer to broader action.

“People’s personal choices support local food,” McMullan said. “Rebuilding the (local food) infrastructure requires private entrepreneurship and public support.”

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