They really coming after pasta now?

  • Seleni@lemmy.world
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    23 hours ago

    You know, you could have just kept your thoughts to yourself, and then no-one would ever know you have no idea how markets and supply work, or how much effort and cost actually go into making pasta at home.

    Was there any particular reason you wanted to put your ignorance on display?

    • CerebralHawks@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      4 hours ago

      Is there a reason the only two options are “import pasta from Italy” and “make it yourself at home”?

      Why do you think it can’t be made at factories in the US? What do US factories lack that Italy has but everyone also has in their home?

      Before we talk about my ignorance, clarify that point. We can’t have a valid conversation with you moving the goalposts so far.

      • Seleni@lemmy.world
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        22 minutes ago

        Wow, you really don’t know anything about supply and infrastructure, do you? Dude, this is, like, econ 101. I’m sorry you got such a poor education; you should probably get your money back from whatever school you went to.

        Think about it. Do you really think that the pasta companies in the US have entire production lines and factories sitting idle? Or that they only run for a few hours a day and then everyone goes home? Of course not. They’re running at capacity for as long as they can every day. They don’t have the ability to ramp up pasta production.

        To increase pasta production in the US, those companies would have to either expand their current facilities, or build new ones. And despite what idiotic talking conservative heads seem to think, it is physically impossible for that to happen with the snap of a finger.

        Take it from someone whose company is working on upgrading a current facility. Not expanding, mind you; just upgrading. The permitting process alone took us two years. Construction itself will be at least a year and a half. So that’s 3-4 years to build/expand a new factory, maybe more.

        That means you’re looking at 3-4 years before those US companies can replace the pasta that’s not in our economy anymore. Which means for 3 years or more most Americans won’t be able to afford (or even acquire in the first place) what is a staple food, especially for poor families. That’s what your initial comment boiled down to: starving the poor in the hopes that it might get better eventually.

        And all of this is assuming the companies have the money to do all this in the first place. Even upgrades aren’t cheap; a whole-ass new building is crazy expensive. Not every company has that kind of cash, and if the banks aren’t convinced it’ll be a good return on their investment, then getting a loan for it isn’t happening either. Which delays things further as fewer companies will be able to build to meet demand.