By Daniel Stih
Why does food keep getting more expensive? Why does a bag of apples cost double what it did a decade ago, even when farms are producing the same amount of food? Most people blame inflation, or “supply and demand,” or vaguely defined “shortages.” Those explanations don’t match reality.
There is no food shortage. Demand hasn’t suddenly spiked. The basic cost to grow food — planting a seed, watering it, harvesting it — hasn’t changed much in decades. Food isn’t expensive because farming got harder. Food is expensive because layers of hidden fees, taxes, royalties, and corporate controls have been quietly added to the cost of every bite you eat.
This article breaks down the real reasons behind rising food prices and the structural changes that could make food affordable again.
Inflation Isn’t the Reason Food Is Expensive
Let’s start by clearing up a common myth. Food prices are not being driven primarily by inflation or shortages. Inflation affects everything: clothing, housing, cars; Food, however, has risen faster than almost every other category, as food is not discretionary. You can switch brands of shoes; You can’t choose to eat less. Food prices rise because people must buy food, and the system knows it.
The real question is: Who is adding costs to your food, and why? Most people have no idea that modern food is entangled in a massive intellectual-property economy.
The Hidden Costs You Never See: Patents, Royalties & Licensing Fees
Seed Patents and Royalties
Companies have patented everything from apples to soybeans to corn hybrids. When a farmer plants patented seeds, they must pay royalties every year, even if they save seeds from their harvest. Examples of patented foods:
- Honeycrisp apples
- Eureka lemons
- GMO corn and soy
- Countless fruit and vegetable varieties
Patents allow corporations to set any price they want. Farmers have no choice but to pay. Seed companies make billions, and consumers pay the difference.
The Fix —> End intellectual-property patents on food. Seeds should not be owned.
Licensing Fees in the Supply Chain & Shelf-Space
Processing plants, distributors, and grocery chains all charge “licensing fees” for participation in the food system. Then comes where to display them: shelf space, known as “slotting fees”.
Grocery stores charge companies for the privilege of being on a shelf. Middle shelf? More expensive. Eye level? Even more. Monopoly economics, disguised as retail policy.
The Fix —> Ban shelf-space fees for necessary goods like food.
Climate Fees, Carbon Taxes & Cow Taxes Embedded in Your Groceries
Climate policies, regardless of your views on global warming, function as food surcharges. Here are the hidden charges most consumers never hear about:
Carbon taxes on farm fuel and transportation - Fuel used to plow fields, power irrigation, transport food, run refrigeration is taxed under “carbon emissions fees.” Farmers don’t get to opt out. They pass the cost to you.
Methane fees (“cow taxes”) - Livestock exhale methane. Regulators tax this gas as if the farmer could somehow make a cow stop digesting.
Carbon-footprint labeling - Europe and Denmark want every food labeled with its emissions score. Who pays for the audits and reporting? Farmers and processors. And then you.
Fix —> Remove carbon taxes and climate fees from food production entirely.
The Organic Label That Made EVERYTHING More Expensive
When the "organic" certification was created, it was meant to reward farmers who avoided pesticides. Then big corporations stepped in. The certification became too expensive. Small farmers can’t afford it. Big companies used the organic label to raise prices on all food.
You can see this at the grocery store. If “organic” apples sell for $10, conventional growers say, “Great! Now we can charge $9 for non-organic apples". Organic certification became a price-raising tool for everyone. And what does it mean to be organic anyhow? We’ll get to how that was watered down as the price went up.
Fix —> Eliminate government-controlled organic labeling. Allow farmers to use truthful labels without fees.
Commodities Trading: When Wall Street Bets on Your Food
Most people have no idea how much food prices are inflated by financial speculation. Hedge funds and large investors buy and sell food futures, not because they grow food, rather they want to profit. This speculation raises prices and even influences how much food gets produced. The more traders gamble on food, the more your groceries cost.
Fix —> Restrict commodities trading in food to farmers and actual distributors.
I have another episode on this, “A Better Marketplace for a Wealthier World — with Noah Healy on Coordinated Discovery Market (CDM)” in which Noah discuss how to integrate the stock market into the food market such that both investors and consumers benefit.
The Pesticide Myth: Why “Organic” Isn’t Safer
As someone who has tested pesticides and studied fungal pathogens for decades, I’ll tell you something surprising: Organic produce is often moldier and spoils faster. Organic farms may legally use pesticides. And they may use less effective. Conventional farms may have fewer fungal contaminants but more chemicals sprayed. The solution is not “use more pesticides”, it’s to practice Integrated Pest Management (IPM): Identify the pest → use the least toxic treatment → escalate only if needed. IPM improves yields and safety.
Fix —> Ban indiscriminate spraying. Require IPM.
What’s Really Making Food Expensive
Here’s a summary of unnecessary, add-ons that drive up the price of food. NONE of these help you eat by increase the supply of food. NONE help small farmers. ALL of them raise the prices of food artificially.
- Climate taxes
- Carbon credits
- Methane/cow taxes
- Organic certification fees
- Seed patents & royalties
- Licensing and shelf-space fees
- Compliance paperwork
- Wall Street speculation
- Trademarks on plant varieties
Solutions: How to Make Food Affordable Again
Here is a clear, actionable plan:
1. Remove all taxes and climate fees connected to food.
Food is not a luxury. Stop taxing farm fuel, food transport, livestock emissions, and agricultural water.
2. Abolish patents and royalties on seeds, plants, and food varieties.
No one should own the genetics of an apple.
3. Ban shelf-space fees and distribution royalties.
Walmart should not charge a farmer for the right to sell food.
4. Eliminate organic certification fees.
Allow truthful labeling without paying the government.
5. Regulate commodities markets.
Limit food futures trading to farmers and wholesalers.
6. Require IPM pest management.
This is healthier for people and crops.
7. Increase transparency in pricing.
Consumers should know:
- What part of the cost went to farming
- What part went to regulation
- What part was corporate markup
We Can Fix Food Prices if We Remove Hidden Costs
Food is not expensive because farming got harder. Food is expensive because the system around food (patents, taxes, licensing, climate fees, and corporate gatekeeping) became a giant toll road. We can reduce food prices dramatically by removing the artificial constraints, fees, and monopolies layered onto our food supply. Affordable food is not a mystery. If we want lower food prices, the solution is simple:
Stop taxing food.
Stop patenting food.
Stop monetizing food.
Let farmers farm.
Let people eat.
This article helps you think clearly in a noisy world, cut through misinformation, and discover solutions as applied to the costs of food and why prices keep going up.