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Waitrose prices -

Generic muesli: £1.80
Organic muesli: £3.99

Yes, people will be switching from organics because they can't afford them. How many people can spend £4 on a box of cereal?

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 06:57:02 AM EST
Well, then make your own müesli from whole grains, by soaking them. You have to chew a little more, but that only improves the digestion.
by Fran (fran at eurotrib dot com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 07:08:39 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Nice thought but the people who are purely jumping on a bandwagon where it is convenient are not likely to consider making their own cereal as an option - they will go the easiest way possible for them, buy cheaper cereal and who cares if it is organic or not?

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by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 08:19:20 AM EST
[ Parent ]
It's possible to afford a lot of organic food if you cut down on processed stuff, e.g. just buy bread, staples, vegetables, dairy products and fruit. But yes, a lot of organic food would have to come down in price in order to remain attractive. Maybe a temporary drop in the market is not that bad. I don't imagine that organic food businesses have been that mindful of price after the boom they have been through.
by nanne (zwaerdenmaecker@gmail.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 07:14:06 AM EST
[ Parent ]
i think it amusing to reflect on how peak oil will probably acquaint many people with the joys of organic farming.

 it'll lose its twee aspect, fo' sho...

~"When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside as fate." Karl Jung~

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 03:28:11 PM EST
[ Parent ]
How much of the organic price is cashing in on the trend though?  Will a drop in sales (as nanne suggests) bring about a drop to more realistic prices for organic food?

the article points to how the most common organic foods are also seeing a drop in sales, including eggs - stuff like £4 cereal can hardly be surprised to be seeing a drop in sales.

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by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 08:17:21 AM EST
[ Parent ]
The problem is, a lot of people seem to be in real financial difficulty. I guess not having a mortgage means I'm not seeing it so far, but if you have less money you don't have a lot of choice, you have to spend less. And a lot of things are hard to change immediately, so the ones that can (like choice of food) tend to be the ones that change.
by Metatone (metatone [a|t] gmail (dot) com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 08:32:04 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Good points.  My food bills have soared but I don't have a mortgage to worry about either, nor do I have gas bills so I have been able to absorb the extra costs so far.

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by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 09:05:02 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I think prices have risen significantly. I remember £2.50 to £3 for organic cereal - £4 seems new to me. But I don't buy a lot of muesli, so I may not have been paying attention.

I don't think £4 is sustainable, even for the Waitrose market.

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 08:58:04 AM EST
[ Parent ]
True; however, all food prices have risen over the last year or so.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 12:27:57 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I think this may be a Waitrose special.

Morrisons are selling Jordan's organic muesli for £2.50-ish, which is much closer to the price I remembered.

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Fri Aug 29th, 2008 at 07:14:56 PM EST
[ Parent ]

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