Photo by Artem Beliaikin on Unsplash Production of boiler chickens (those raised for their meat, not eggs) in the US...
Frites Market on the Fritz
Like many countries around the world, Belgium is fighting a battle against the COVID-19 virus. As part of social distancing, restaurants and bars are closing down or limiting service. As a result, much of the food that was destined to be sold to these restaurants and bars now needs a new customer, or face being destroyed. One of the industries hit hardest in Belgium is the potato industry, which supplies the ingredient for the country’s famous pommes frites, i.e. French fries.
To help reduce the surplus, Belgium has taken an unusual step: asking its citizens to eat frozen fries two meals per week. Frozen potatoes account for 75% of the country’s potato processing. By attempting to get Belgians to eat more potatoes, they are hoping to avoid a massive amount of waste in the industry.
Source: GQ “Belgians Asked to Eat Fries Twice Weekly as Coronavirus Civic Duty” by Luke Darby.
Discussion Questions:
- Explain why farmers might opt to destroy their product rather than donate it to charities, such as food banks.
- Suppose potatoes and carrots are substitutes. How would increasing potato consumption affect the equilibrium price and quantity in the market for carrots?
