WEST DES MOINES, IOWA - July 2, 2009 - Some Iowans may save a few dollars on their July 4th picnics this year by serving meat and dairy products produced by Iowa's farmers. According to American Farm Bureau's second quarter Marketbasket Survey, the total cost of 16 popular food items has decreased by two percent over the last quarter and approximately six percent in the last year.
Boneless chicken breasts, eggs, sliced deli ham, whole milk, ground chuck, sirloin tip roast and bacon were among the Iowa-produced food products that dropped in price this quarter. This is the third consecutive quarter food prices have declined, the first time since 1991.
"Consumers will find some real values shopping for meat, eggs, and dairy this summer," said Sterling Liddell, Iowa Farm Bureau's senior research and development analyst. "Last year we saw a dramatic increase in food prices, and some blamed those increases directly on ethanol. This year ethanol production remains strong, while commodity prices are declining. We can clearly see that the price of food is more directly linked to fluctuations in energy costs and global demand rather than ethanol production."
Over the last year, the retail price of eggs is down 26 percent, milk has fallen 22 percent, chicken has declined 19 percent and bacon is 11 percent lower. Iowa leads the nation in hog and egg production. The state ranks 7th in cattle, 12th in milk production and 26th in broiler and meat chickens.
To read more about American Farm Bureau's second quarter Marketbasket Survey, visit: http://fb.org.twi.bz/a.
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