Food inflation is up for the ninth straight month matching the U.S. inflation rate of 7.9% a year, with double-digit increases in the price of meat, milk, and fresh fruit.
The U.S. and the U.K. wrapped up the fourth round of talks working on 16 different chapters of the proposed deal covering food safety rules, market access and financial services.
Just $70 million in Coronavirus Financial Assistance Program dairy payments were made the first week of July, but it’s unknown what was the real cause of the slowdown.
Grocery stores and farm groups have been urging people to buy only the food they can use, but a number of staple products have seen surges of demand, including dairy.
Certified farmers’ markets are now defined as an essential service for distribution of food supplies. Many of the markets were temporarily closed, have now reopened.
The California Strawberry Commission reports acreage in Oxnard was down slightly this season, but higher-yielding varieties have resulted in record levels of production.
The hits keep on coming for U.S. fruit exporters as China’s tariffs on U.S. apples, pears, cherries and other U.S. commodities increased an additional 10% yesterday.