why is wheat so cheap and pseudocereal so expensive?

[napelazam]

why is wheat so cheap and pseudocereal so expensive?
is pseudocereal really harder to breed?

 

[monotonic]

Maybe because wheat is addictive. So of course it has been extensively hybridized and bred so that people can have as much as they want, which is more than they will ever need, especially when they don't need it at all.

 

[napelazam]

Sorry, i don't understand?
That is not a reason for expensive cereals. lol

 

[Henchman 21]

Add sugar and charge more. Get you hooked and so long as you can't do without it they will charge as much as they can for it. I would recommend never touching any of that. Eggs and bacon for breakfast for me please. Grains bad, fat good.

 

[whitecoast]

why is wheat so cheap and pseudocereal so expensive?
is pseudocereal really harder to breed?

Pseudograins like quinoa, amaranth and buckwheat have not been mainstream western staples for the length of time wheat has, so they are much less selectively bred for optimum yields like wheat. They are gaining popularity due to the growing awareness of the health risks of gluten and inflammatory glycoproteins in grains. Due to the increased demand their prices are going up, since the people usually on the bleeding edge of health food crazes are upper middle class women who have time to read labels and the kind of money to shop at the more expensive organic food stores.

We tend not to recommend pseudograins any more than regular grains, since virtually all seeds contain anti-nutrients like lectins, saponins and FODMAPS that can cause leaky gut and lead to chronic inflammatory diseases. The Life Without Bread thread and Ketogenic Diet threads contain more information if you're interested.

 

[Henchman 21]

Sorry it looks like I missunderstood the whole pseudocerial thing. My bad. Didn't mean to look like an idiot but alas Ive blown my cover.

 

[Gaby]

why is wheat so cheap and pseudocereal so expensive?
is pseudocereal really harder to breed?

Hello!

Actually, seeing as this is your first post on the forum, we would appreciate it if you would post a brief intro about yourself in the Newbies section, telling us how you found this forum, how long you've been reading it and/or the SOTT page, whether or not you've read any of Laura's books yet, etc.

 

[whitecoast]

Sorry it looks like I missunderstood the whole pseudocerial thing. My bad. Didn't mean to look like an idiot but alas Ive blown my cover.

I still think it's good you spoke up, since it's through networking and sharing with others that we learn our own blind spots and grow in awareness about ourselves. It's not a crime to make mistakes.

 

[Palinurus]

Sorry it looks like I missunderstood the whole pseudocerial thing. My bad. Didn't mean to look like an idiot but alas Ive blown my cover.

Hi Captainmurphy,

Obviously I don't know whether you're in need of any solace but you could try reading this topic: What sort of idiot are you? in order to at least get a broader perspective on this matter. ;)

 

[skycsil]

Sorry it looks like I missunderstood the whole pseudocerial thing. My bad. Didn't mean to look like an idiot but alas Ive blown my cover.

Actually, it's a good question to ponder about. It made me think of A Brave New World where drugs are not only free, but provided by the government.

 

[HifromGrace]

Isn't wheat in the same category as corn for farm subsidies? The long & short of it is that American farmers get government funding to produce these crops - which means that they are NOT being produced at fair market value, they are cheaper to make than others.

Plus there is a whole infrastructure in place that makes it cheaper (from seed procurement, to processing from the field, to travel/distribution), you'd have to start fresh with quinoa. for example, what type of farm implement would you have available for large scale processing?

I'm just drawing a random example, for all I know a farmer can use wheat threshers & combines to do quinoa - but my point still holds, even if on the processing & production end it's the same cost, the Am govnt provides payment for producing the mainstream crops (for example, if it's a low price that year due to bad weather, the farmer will get a check in the mail for the full price - you will not get that check with other crops).

That's why junk food is cheap too.

 

[Henchman 21]

Sorry it looks like I missunderstood the whole pseudocerial thing. My bad. Didn't mean to look like an idiot but alas Ive blown my cover.

Hi Captainmurphy,

Obviously I don't know whether you're in need of any solace but you could try reading this topic: What sort of idiot are you? in order to at least get a broader perspective on this matter. ;)

I actually read the entire thread just before rereading this post hence why I used the word idiot in referencing my self. Good funny stuff. Thanks for the link but I beat you too the punch. :P

 

[A Jay]

Sorry it looks like I missunderstood the whole pseudocerial thing. My bad. Didn't mean to look like an idiot but alas Ive blown my cover.

Hi Captainmurphy,

Obviously I don't know whether you're in need of any solace but you could try reading this topic: What sort of idiot are you? in order to at least get a broader perspective on this matter. ;)

I actually read the entire thread just before rereading this post hence why I used the word idiot in referencing my self. Good funny stuff. Thanks for the link but I beat you too the punch. :P

If it makes you feel any better, on first glance I too thought that napelazam was asking something along the lines of 'if wheat is so cheap why is my Lucky Charms so expensive?' After reading more carefully, I saw the qualifiers I didn't originally pick up on. Lol.