Biden visits Illinois farm to highlight Russia-driven food inflation

CHICAGO, May perhaps 11 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday blamed Russia’s war on Ukraine for the latest spike in worldwide food price ranges and visited a family farm in Illinois wherever he pledged to support the nation’s farmers as they search for to fill the provide shortage.

Biden claimed U.S. farmers have served pull People in america via the COVID-19 pandemic and now the Ukraine disaster. “You are the spine of liberty,” he explained, next a tour of an 800-acre (320-hectare) loved ones farm in Kankakee owned by Jeff and Gina O’Connor.

“Suitable now, The us is fighting on two fronts. At property, it can be inflation and growing price ranges. Abroad, it truly is aiding Ukrainians defend their democracy and feeding people who are left hungry close to the entire world because Russian atrocities exist,” Biden stated.

The take a look at will come as the White Dwelling is having difficulties to rein in inflation on lots of fronts, from gasoline to food stuff. U.S. fuel prices hit record highs on Tuesday, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February dramatically worsened the outlook for food items rates.

The White Dwelling introduced steps on Wednesday aimed at serving to U.S. farmers strengthen food stuff generation and decrease foods costs, like doubling funding for domestic fertilizer generation and expanding specialized support for nutrient management instruments.

The administration will also raise the amount of counties qualified for double cropping coverage for planting a next crop on the exact land in the exact 12 months, the White Household stated.

Biden declared this week that combating inflation is the administration’s No. 1 priority, echoing repeated nationwide polls that show People see it as their greatest concern.

New knowledge on Wednesday confirmed U.S. consumer costs rose at a slower, but however considerably elevated, rate. The Labor Division said charges throughout the economic system rose 8.3% in excess of the 12 months through April. Food price ranges alone obtained 9.4% more than that period of time. read through much more

The U.N. food items agency recently reported food items rates hit an all-time file in February and all over again in March, building on prior COVID-pushed price spikes. Russia and Ukraine account for virtually a 3rd of international wheat and barley output, and two-thirds of the world’s exports of sunflower oil applied for cooking.

Though in Illinois, Biden also frequented Chicago where he thanked unions for their help and touted his occupation creation record to a raucous group of 3,500 union customers from across the United States and Canada at a convention hosted by the Global Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

“You all brought me to the dance, and I necessarily mean it,” Biden explained, contacting himself the most professional-union president and lauding the center course, which he reported developed The us, many thanks to union guidance. “Search people, our economy has absent from getting on the mend to becoming on the go,” he said.

Biden also defended the fiscal stimulus he championed throughout the pandemic towards criticism that it drove up inflation. “What did the MAGA group wanna do? Fail to remember it,” he mentioned, incorporating to his latest assaults on the Republican motion commenced by former President Donald Trump.

But the President took a a lot more reflective tone at a Chicago fundraiser later in the evening, acknowledging that soaring selling prices would beset his party’s attempts to defeat Trumpism.

“It’s going to be challenging since inflation is gonna scare the living hell out of absolutely everyone.”

Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw in Philadelphia and Trevor Hunnicutt in Illinois
Further reporting by Alexandra Alper in Washington
Enhancing by Matthew Lewis and Bradley Perrett

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