• stray@pawb.social
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    3 days ago

    Sorry if Iā€™m misunderstanding the problem, but arenā€™t foods like beans and rice which can be ordered in bulk online a good solution for people stuck in food deserts? I would think that anything with a long shelf life would be superior to perishables. (American eggs have to be refrigerated, right?)

    • Croquette@sh.itjust.works
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      3 days ago

      Itā€™s a multifaceted problem, and you are thinking in terms of people getting the best for their money instead of people being starved and trying to make a dollar last.

      1. Buying in bulk is expensive upfront. If you are squeezing pennies, it is probably not an option for you.

      2. Eggs have different nutrients that beans donā€™t have. One of them being fat for example. If you canā€™t get it from eggs anymore, you need to add that cost as well to your expenses.

      3. People that lives day to day with a squeezed budget have to pivot right now, as in today, to different sources of food. I can afford to phase out expensive food from my diet, but for many people itā€™s the difference between starving or not today. If you already donā€™t have much options, switching on a dime isnā€™t realistic.

      • stray@pawb.social
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        3 days ago

        you are thinking in terms of people getting the best for their money instead of people being starved and trying to make a dollar last.

        Iā€™m not, actually. When I say ā€œin bulkā€ I donā€™t mean a 20kg sack. 500g of rice or dry legumes goes a long way for a low price.

        When we were starving we mostly got whatever was on sale or short-dated, so we ate different things all the time out of necessity, but dry goods were always reliable, which is why I asked about them.

        • Croquette@sh.itjust.works
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          3 days ago

          Dry goods are still reliable, but the issue at hand is that a dozen eggs are now 8-9 dollars, and that rise was pretty fast.

          People relying on eggs for survival and not part as a diversified diet need to switch to other sources right now which they might not have available. You wonā€™t survive on rice only. Beans should definitely be added to your diet for their health benefits and as a way to be less insecure with food. However, eggs were also playing that part and now itā€™s not reliable anymore.

          In a vacuum, it isnā€™t that big of a deal, but in reality, already strained people are even more strained right now and the egg prices exploding is just another kick in the guts.