The $20 Burrito Debate Is a Sign of Inflation Fatigue

Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas, Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information, news and insight around the world Photographer: Brent Lewin/Bloomberg Food inflation is still hitting Americans hard. The latest consumer price index report showed supermarket inflation running well above the old “normal.” Ditto restaurant inflation. The pain is most noticeable in the produce section, where the past six months have been marked by a succession of price spikes in tomatoes, lettuce and currently apples. Before that, it was coffee, beef and, for a real throwback, eggs . These events can feel idiosyncratic: The lettuce crop was hit by a heat wave in Arizona (driving up prices before Cyclospora drove them down); beef prices were pushed up by the New World screwworm cattle parasite; and Florida’s tomato crop was hit by a cold snap.

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