Rising rice prices and news reports of rice shortages in Asia are causing an unexpected ripple here at home: Many people, especially immigrants from countries where rice is a mainstay, are stocking up. And while experts stop short of calling this behavior hoarding, some warehouse stores have limited consumers to no more than 80 pounds of rice at a time.
The fact that there is no shortage of rice in the United States doesn't seem to matter. Prices are still rising, and economists say it triggers a rational response: Load up before it's too late.
Zealous rice shoppers made us think about our own pantry-stocking behavior. Even though rice keeps well, we'd need years to consume 80 pounds. It seems ludicrous to buy that much. Yet how often do we jump on a "buy-one, get-one-free" special, whether we can use the items or not?
Until researching our cost-cutting cookbook "Cheap. Fast. Good!" we never considered what a pantry represents in sheer dollars. If you reclassify those cans and condiments as inventory, then in business terms, storing more than you can reasonably consume is money that could be earning interest.
But what about inflation? It is wise to buy extra food on sale -- up to a point. The most valuable lesson we've learned from maintaining "Cheap. Fast. Good!" kitchens is this: The most expensive food you buy is the food you never eat.
Take a look at the back of your pantry. How many years has that coconut milk been sitting there? What about the pickle relish and the pumpkin purée?
The solution is simple: Take a pantry inventory and eat what's already in stock before buying more. Set a personal time limit for consumption and fight the natural urge to hoard.
