Yes, the climate crisis is raising your grocery bills | Suzi Kerr

Droughts, fires, floods, heatwaves – they’re all contributing to our supply-chain problems and brutal inflation

Families around the world are struggling with higher grocery costs and electricity and heating bills. What they may not realize is that rising inflation is increasingly driven by another global crisis: climate change.

Last year, the United States incurred over $2bn in costs due to 20 climate-related extreme weather events, from Hurricane Ian to heatwaves and drought. Lumber, cotton, tomatoes, wheat, and energy – and the products they generate, from denim jeans to your Italian takeout dinner – were all affected by these events and are now more expensive than this time last year. Climate-driven extreme weather and disasters are now more frequently responsible for production shortages, supply chain disruptions, and labor issues that lead to higher costs of living.

Suzi Kerr is the chief economist of the Environmental Defense Fund