Supermarket shelves across the UK were stripped bare today after Brits took to stockpiling essential goods as the supply crisis continues. Pictures from stores show empty meat, fruit and frozen food sections as shoppers raided what was left. Throngs of shoppers were spotted pushing trolleys stacked with toilet paper and bottles of water ahead of the festive season. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/16373968/supermarket-shelves-empty-stockpiling-essentials/

One of Uruguay’s top agricultural investors is stepping up its exposure to the sector, betting that a multiyear agricultural commodity uptrend will boost farm revenues and property prices. A financial trust sponsored by Agropecuaria del Litoral raised $100 million this week to buy farmland in the South American country, a major producer of beef, milk, rice and soybeans. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/south-american-fund-buys-more-150402598.html

The proposals for how these CBDCs might work should be enough to raise red flags in even the most trusting of minds. Most people wouldn’t like the idea of the government monitoring “all spending in real-time”, but that’s not the worst of it. By far the most dangerous idea is that any future digital currency should be “programmable”. Meaning the people issuing the money would have the power to control how it is spent. Agustin Carstens, head of Bank for International Settlements -"The key difference [with a CBDC] is that the central bank would have absolute control on the rules and regulations that will determine the use of that expression of central bank liability, and the have the technology to enforce that.” https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/war-cash-endgame-here

Consumers will have to get used to increasing food prices, Kraft Heinz CEO Miguel Patricio has warned. Patricio admitted that the world’s fifth-largest food and beverage company has been raising prices of such products as ketchup and baked beans “where necessary around the world.” Kraft Heinz has reportedly increased prices for more than half of its products in the US, the company’s home market, and expects to do the same elsewhere. https://www.rt.com/business/537163-heinz-boss-food-prices-high/

Aluminum jumped to the highest since 2008 as a deepening power crisis squeezes supplies of the energy-intensive metal that’s used in everything from beer cans to food packaging/preservation. https://www.mining.com/web/aluminum-price-hits-13-year-high-as-energy-surge-pressures-supply/

USA- Washington - By almost any conceivable measure, this summer’s lengthy and extreme drought led to historic lows in the production and quality of the region’s signature cash crop. Soft white wheat, the kind grown in this region and sought after by worldwide markets for its use in cakes, pastries and noodles, had its worst production year nationwide since the mid-1970s, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In Washington, the projected crop year production this year is 87.1 million bushels of both spring and winter wheat, the lowest total since 1964. https://www.union-bulletin.com/news/northwest/drought-conditions-cause-soft-white-wheat-production-in-washington-to-plummet-to-historic-lows/article_352e2a70-2ae4-11ec-af67-b70dc8d80145.html

Edward Snowden offered his perspective on the discussion of CBDCs. He describe this deflationary nature to be a threat to the savings of the “wage-worker,” forcing people to spend before their funds are reduced. He admits that the hypothetical fed-controlled CBDC and the ‘digital dollar’ are the same, with the latter being something of a wolf in sheep’s clothing. https://beincrypto.com/snowden-deflationary-fed-cbdc-annihilation-savings/

Argentina -Of the 55 million tonnes of corn expected by the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange to be harvested next season, 38.5 million have been sold, said the government source, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter. "An order of priorities has been established over export declarations. Priority will be given to exporters who have corn purchased and cargo ships assigned," the ministry source said. "We have five months to go before the harvest starts and 38.5 million tonnes in exports declarations have already been registered," the source added. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/argentina-prioritizes-sales-of-harvested-corn-over-sales-of-next-crop-source-2021-10-12

Microsoft says this particular attack targeted one of its customers in Europe. And said it was 140% stronger than the previous-highest attack in 2020. The attack flooded the system with 2.4 terabytes of data every second. That's compared to the 1Tbps attack in late summer last year. A single terabyte is 1,000 gigabytes, which itself amounts to the equivalent of hundreds of 4K movies. Flooding a system with that amount of data every second is very hard to do. According to Microsoft, the attack lasted around ten minutes. https://www.the-sun.com/tech/3840958/microsoft-cyberattack-china-asia-ddos-attack/

U.S. prices for organic soybeans used to feed livestock and manufacture soy milk have surged to record highs as imports that make up most of the country’s supply have declined, triggering price increases for food including organically raised chicken. The costly soybeans and higher-priced organic products are fueling food inflation. The $56 billion U.S. organic food sector is also grappling with a shortage of shipping containers and a tight labor market as global food prices hit a 10-year high. https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/foodnews/analysis-e2-80-98it-e2-80-99s-a-madhouse-e2-80-99-organic-us-soy-prices-hit-record-fuel-food-inflation/ar-AAPn7G9

The U.K.’s largest container port is the latest port worldwide to experience the problems related to the surge in container shipping in 2021. Felixstowe, which handles more than a third of all containers in the U.K. was forced to briefly suspend the return of empties, and as the delays and congestion mounted major carriers including Maersk have begun to divert ships from the British port. Among the issues that have been causing problems at the port is a shortage of truck drivers to move the containers. https://maritime-executive.com/article/maersk-diverts-ships-and-containers-as-backlog-snarls-uk-ports

The African Swine Fever is now in Northern Hemisphere and that is making U.S. hog farmers nervous. The most likely introduction of that disease to our shore would come via people traffic and bringing pork products with them.” African Swine Fever is a highly contagious disease of domestic and wild pigs which can lead to economic and production losses. Transmission can occur through feed, but also from objects like shoes, clothes, vehicles, etc. https://www.marshallindependent.com/news/local-news/2021/10/hog-farmers-nervous-about-african-swine-fever-now-in-northern-hemisphere/

Iran needs to buy a record 8 million tonnes of wheat in the current season, Iranian industry sources said, after its domestic crop was hit by drought, while the jump in imports will coincide with high global grain prices adding to pressures on the country's finances. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/iran-buying-record-volume-of-wheat-after-worst-drought-in-50-years-sources-2021-10-13-0

The Bank of England's (BoE) fintech lead Tom Mutton has stressed that the bank was keeping an "open mind" on the rollout of a digital pound as it explores a central bank digital currency (CBDC), but that hasty implementation could lead to "bad outcomes". https://finance.yahoo.com/news/britcoin-cbdc-bank-of-england-digital-currency-tom-mutton-092114017.html

The IMF report warned that countries adopting bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies as legal tender could hamper their central banks’ efforts to set monetary policy, cause liquidity risks and destabilize economies. Although the report doesn’t name El Salvador, the IMF has said repeatedly the Central American country’s Bitcoin Law poses “macroeconomic, financial and legal issues.” https://ca.news.yahoo.com/imf-report-views-cryptoization-threat-005402350.html

Japanese technology company Olympus said on Tuesday it was investigating a cyberattack on its IT systems in the U.S., Canada and Latin America. The BlackMatter ransomware group is one of the most productive ransomware groups that operate today after it emerged this summer from the remnants of the DarkSide ransomware group. https://www.itworldcanada.com/post/olympus-hit-with-second-cyberattack-this-year

Sugar production in Brazil's center-south region fell 19% year-on-year in the second half of September to 2.31 million tonnes, adding that dozens of mills have already finished crushing for the season.
Sugarcane crushing late in September was down 11% to 35.8 million tonnes, while ethanol production fell 8% in the period to 1.98 billion liters. Brazil, the world's largest sugar producer, is having a poor season due to drought and frosts that hurt the cane fields, and will produce around 6 million tonnes less than last season. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/brazilian-sugar-output-down-19-late-in-sept-some-mills-ending-crush-2021-10-13

The Sri Lankan government ended price controls on essential foods in a bid to end black market trading as food shortages worsen amid a foreign currency crisis. The cabinet decided to free prices for milk powder, wheat flour, sugar and liquified petroleum gas hoping it would increase supplies. "Prices could go up by as much as 37 per cent across the board, but it is hoped dealers will not make unconscionable profits," https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/world/sri-lanka-allows-sharp-rise-in-food-prices-to-ease-shortages/ar-AAPh2ee

USA- According to government data released, prices for food and rents increased in the world's largest economy last month. The Labor Department's consumer price index (CPI) rose 5.4 percent, seasonally adjusted, in September compared to the same month a year ago. Food and housing prices accounted for more than half of the overall gain. https://www.msn.com/en-xl/money/markets/food-and-rent-prices-drive-us-inflation-spike-in-september/ar-AAPts6z

The owner of the UK’s biggest poultry supplier has warned that the cost of chicken is expected to rise by more than 10%, adding that food in Britain is “too cheap.” “The days when you could feed a family of four with a £3 chicken are coming to an end. We need transparent, honest pricing. This is a reset and we need to spell out what this will mean,” https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/oct/13/uks-biggest-poultry-supplier-warns-of-big-rise-in-price-of-chicken-boparan-bernard-matthews-2-sisters

Soaring wheat prices are expected to remain in the short term as markets stay bullish. This week saw the London November 2021 feed wheat futures contract climb to £208.50/t, a jump of £8.50 on the week. Stock levels for wheat in major exporting countries are down to their lowest levels since 2008, according to the AHDB. This, coupled with tight supply of wheat in the northern hemisphere due to adverse weather in the US, Canada and Russia, is driving global prices. https://www.fwi.co.uk/business/markets-and-trends/crop-prices/soaring-wheat-prices-and-uncertainty-ahead-in-grain-markets