Butler County FFA Assist Customers at IGA

Sun, 02/24/2013 - 9:10pm — Diane Dyer

On Friday, February 22, Butler County FFA members helped bag and carry out groceries at the local Morgantown IGA at part of the Kentucky Farm Bureau Food Check-out week. They handed out the following information:
U.S. consumers spend about 10% of their disposable annual income on food. Here is a breakdown by country.
• Philippines 38%
• China 32%

• Japan 14%

United States 10%

•    The agriculture and food industries employ approximately 24 million people worldwide.
•    U.S. agricultural exports generate more than $100 billion in business activity annually.
•    Almost 90% of U.S. farms are operated by families or individuals.
•    Today’s farmer-using less land, water, and energy than previous generations-grows enough food and fiber to feed 154 people.
•    When applied to calendar days, the average American earns enough income to pay for his entire year’s supply of food in just seven weeks. By comparison, the same person must work until mid-April to pay for annual taxes. That’s seven weeks for food and more than three months for taxes.
•    According to Kentucky Farm Bureau’s Marketbasket Survey data, the average retail food price of 40 basic grocery items in Kentucky has increased less than $45 over the last 20 years.

Kentucky Farm Bureau leaders across the state are celebrating national Food Checkout Week February 19-25 to mark the time of year when the average American has earned enough income to meet his or her annual cost of food. Despite recent challenges in the economy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that Americans spend just 10% of their disposable income on food each year.
“Kentucky’s farmers work year-round to make sure we enjoy some of the safest, most abundant and certainly the most affordable food in all of the world,” said KFB President Mark Haney. “That’s a great thing to celebrate any time of year.” While food prices are not completely exempt from changes in our nation’s economy, the cost of food is not nearly as cumbersome as many other expenses. The average American earns enough to pay for his or her annual food costs by the seventh week of the year, but, according to research conducted by the Tax Foundation, that same person would have to work for 102 days (or until approximately the middle of April) to earn enough to pay for annual taxes.

“We work significantly longer to pay for federal taxes than for our food,” noted Haney. “Food Check-Out Day is a good reminder of the affordability, quantity and quality of the food that our farmers bring to market.”
“Food Check-Out Week” planners kept the nation’s fluctuating economic conditions in mind as they themed this year’s event, “Stretching Your Grocery Dollar With Healthy, Nutritious Food.” As Farm Bureau volunteers in Kentucky and across the country get set to stage supermarket demonstration stations for consumers, their primary goal is to help shoppers increase their knowledge of how to stay on a budget while purchasing healthy food for their families.
“We want to help people in these tough economic times be able to buy lots of good, nutritious food and still stay within budget,” said Terry Gilbert, chair of the American Farm Bureau (AFBF) Women’s Leadership Committee and KFB board member. “While we’re engaging with people and talking about the food the purchase, we’re also talking with them about what we do on our own farms and why we do it. We’re there to honestly answer any questions or concerns they have about what we do to grow fruits and vegetables or raise our livestock.”
“The whole thing is a great way of opening the door to a conversation that puts a face on agriculture,” concluded Gilbert. (www.kfb.com)