MARTIN SLOANE \ Supermarket Shopper Shoppers experience sticker shock

Shoppers checking prices on the better cuts of meat these days are left gasping for breath. Beef prices started a rapid rise this past summer and reached record levels this fall. In many supermarkets, the steak that cost $7.99 a pound last spring is now be $10 a pound or more.
There are several reasons why beef prices are at record levels. The first is a dwindling supply of cattle. "Ranchers have been liquidating their herds for several years," said Andy Gottschalk, an agri-business analyst in Greenswood Village, Colo. "They have not been able to build up the herds because of a shortage in feed. Forty percent of the cattle herds are in areas of moderate to severe draught."
The ban on beef imported from Canada also contributes to the shortage. Until recently, 5 to 10 percent of the beef Americans eat came from Canada. After a reported case of mad cow disease many months ago, this important supply was cut off.
Greater demand is another reason beef prices have zoomed upwards, says Gottschalk. He points toward an improving economy and its effect on meat purchases: "When incomes improve, people move up the protein ladder."
He noted there is also an improved attitude toward beef consumption by the medical community. The popularity of high-protein diets like South Beach and Atkins has also had an impact on the demand for beef.
Supermarkets are not happy about charging their customers several dollars more for a pound of steak. My sources tell me some stores have been reluctant to pass along all of the increases and have absorbed some of them.
One thing is certain: rapidly rising beef prices mean there are fewer steak sales.
Where are beef prices going over the next few weeks or months? Is there some relief in sight?
The signals are mixed. According to Michele Peterson, a spokesperson for the National Cattleman's Beef Association, prices began to level off in mid-October. The Cattleman's Association is anxious that consumers do not cross beef off their shopping lists. She advises shoppers to consider lower priced cuts -- the ones that have increased in price the least -- such as chuck, rump and round. "Slow moist cooking turns these cuts into tender and delicious dinners," says Peterson. "Consumers should also consider making dishes like beef fajitas and beef Stroganoff, which use beef more economically."
Mona Golub, a spokesperson for Price Chopper supermarkets in upstate New York says her stores have been featuring less expensive cuts such as chuck and ground beef. There is also more emphasis on promoting poultry and seafood sales with accompanying recipes.
Mona is optimistic. She says beef prices are leveling off and could begin to decline.
Gottschalk is pessimistic: "Until there is relief for the draught and a greater supply of feed, there will not be a buildup of cattle herds and retail prices may remain high until well into 2005."
What are you doing about the high price of beef? Write to me, Martin Sloane, The Supermarket Shopper, in care of The Vindicator. I'll publish interesting letters.
Cool provision
U.S. consumers have a right to know what they area eating and last year, responding to consumer demands, Congress enacted the 2002 Farm Bill, which included a country-of-origin labeling provision (COOL). It directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture to adopt rules requiring retailers to show the country of origin on imported produce, meat and poultry.
With the law enacted, consumers thought that beginning in September 2004 they would have this important product information. What the proponents of COOL did not count on was a strong lobbying campaign by the supermarket industry and its allies to circumvent COOL.
One way to kill enacted legislation is to deny funding to the government agency that's supposed to oversee and enforce the law. It appears that's what the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have done. The 2004 Agriculture Appropriations Bill for the USDA includes a provision banning the Department from adopting and enforcing compliance with COOL regulations for a period of two years. Exempted from the ban are wild fish.
President Bush is expected to sign the funding bill early in the new year. Country-of-origin labeling is an important consumer protection because foreign growers, producers and their governments would be strongly motivated to adhere to safety standards and inspect more carefully to protect their reputations. They would no longer be unidentified and hidden behind the supermarket shelf sign.
The importance of this legislation was brought into focus by the recent outbreak of Hepatitis A linked to contaminated scallions from Mexico. Three people have died and hundreds have been sickened as a result of the produce.
If you are disappointed, let your Congressman know. You can also send a message via e-mail to: cool@usda.gov or send regular mail to: Country of Origin Labeling Program, USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, 1400 Independence Ave. SW / Stop 0249, Washington, D.C. 20250-0249.
The fight for country-of-origin labeling is not over. I will keep my readers informed.
XSend questions and comments to Martin Sloane in care of The Vindicator. The volume of mail precludes individual replies to every letter, but Martin Sloane will respond to letters of general interest in the column.
United Feature Syndicate