Ask AP: Pitched Baseball Speeds, Grocery Prices

AP Baseball Writers

New York

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Is there any legitimate reason why food prices, which supposedly shot up because of the high price of gasoline, did not come back down after the price of fuel went down by half?

Judy A. Wood

Murrells Inlet, S.C.

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Food prices have been rising for more than a year as manufacturers look to recoup high costs not only for energy but also for ingredients like wheat and corn that reached record highs last summer.

Grocery prices rose 6.4 percent in 2008, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which is faster than the 4.2 percent rise from the previous year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts food prices could increase 3.5 percent this year.

So the rate of price hikes is slowing. But prices are unlikely to come down any time soon, since it's unclear how long the lower costs for energy and ingredients will last. Food makers want to have a better handle on the long-term costs of their main ingredients before rolling back their prices.