mmmmm... bacon!

A few weeks ago in class, we discussed why people buy things, especially things they don't really need.  One of the reasons (it is driving me crazy because I can't remember the term), is when people purchase something because they fear it may not be available tomorrow.  This got me thinking about the fear of pork prices rising that were spread all over the news.  I was watching the morning news a few weeks ago and pork consumers who were being interviewed said that they couldn't live without bacon and ham so they will probably start stocking up rather than cut back or go without.  I found their responses kinda silly since people usually don't just eat pork, and like other grocery items prices go up and fluctuate, it is expected that meat will too.

I want to share a blog post my cousin wrote on her blog page about the concerns of pork prices rising.  My cousin Katie and I are the same age and grew up more like sisters then cousins.  She received a full ride scholarship to study business marketing at St. John's University in NYC and now works as a media specialist at M Booth, a marketing firm in NYC.
This is her take on consumers concerns about pork.

Bacon to break the bank?

Just as Denny’s is bringing back its infamous bacon milkshake, reports of a bacon shortage are appearing everywhere in the news. No, the pigs have not all taken to the skies to show us that they can fly, but rather the recent droughts have damaged crops worldwide, and pig farmers are finding themselves without food for their flock. I like the term flock better than herd, especially since I want pigs to fly.

The National Pig Association in the UK is saying that hog farmers are raising fewer hogs, and they’re predicting that pork prices could double by 2013. (Today I pay $3.99 for an 8-slice pack of bacon from Trader Joe’s.) The good news is that this is the National Pig Association in the UK that is reporting this, and conditions in the U.S. have not been as bad. Although my father was Montana’s Pork All American in 1986, at the time this post was being written, he was not available for comment.

My advice to all you bacon eaters out there who will read about this issue in the days to come is to hold off on stockpiling and stay informed. Remember that the media often blows things out of porkportion . If you are not yet a fan of bacon and you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, get thee to the nearest Sur La Table to sign up for their unique cooking class “Everything’s Better with Bacon” where you’ll learn how to make everything from bacon Guinness jam to bacon peanut brittle. Despite the Irish reference, “keep calm & carry on!”

My bacon & I at the fair