Will Masters
@willmasters.bsky.social
Prof. at the Friedman School of Nutrition & Dept. of Economics at Tufts University @tuftsnutrition.bsky.social.
Open-access book on Food Economics: Agriculture, Nutrition and Health.
http://sites.tufts.edu/willmasters
Open-access book on Food Economics: Agriculture, Nutrition and Health.
http://sites.tufts.edu/willmasters
Yes that's true - but veg intake is poorly measured, and when prices change there's a lot of substitution among items of different quality. For diet recall, Dary's analysis of NHANES data has time trends to 2020, and the USDA loss-adjusted data is even more granular
www.ers.usda.gov/data-product...
www.ers.usda.gov/data-product...
Trends in Diet Quality Among U.S. Adults From 1999 to 2020 by Race, Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Disadvantage | Annals of Internal Medicine
Background: Few data have assessed trends in diet quality among U.S. adults. Objective: To evaluate trends in diet quality by race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic disadvantage. Design: Repeated cross-se...
doi.org
October 5, 2025 at 6:37 PM
Yes that's true - but veg intake is poorly measured, and when prices change there's a lot of substitution among items of different quality. For diet recall, Dary's analysis of NHANES data has time trends to 2020, and the USDA loss-adjusted data is even more granular
www.ers.usda.gov/data-product...
www.ers.usda.gov/data-product...
Having low price, high quality tomatoes depends not only on imports in winter, but also immigrant labor, new technology and market competition. It's the tomato theory of everything!
Thx to @camilo-fonseca.bsky.social for clear reporting on how tariffs limit our access to imported sunshine.
3/3
Thx to @camilo-fonseca.bsky.social for clear reporting on how tariffs limit our access to imported sunshine.
3/3
Winter is coming. So are tariff-induced price hikes on tomatoes and other produce. - The Boston Globe
A rise in produce prices could be a sign of higher costs to come as President Trump’s tariffs on imported food become more significant.
www.bostonglobe.com
October 5, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Having low price, high quality tomatoes depends not only on imports in winter, but also immigrant labor, new technology and market competition. It's the tomato theory of everything!
Thx to @camilo-fonseca.bsky.social for clear reporting on how tariffs limit our access to imported sunshine.
3/3
Thx to @camilo-fonseca.bsky.social for clear reporting on how tariffs limit our access to imported sunshine.
3/3
For a decade Americans have benefited from a downward trend in the real cost of tomatoes (in red), even more than all fruits & veg (in green), compared to all groceries (in black).
Each is shown controlling for overall inflation, from FRED with updates here: fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=1MNZ7
2/3
Each is shown controlling for overall inflation, from FRED with updates here: fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=1MNZ7
2/3
FRED Graph
FRED Graph
fred.stlouisfed.org
October 5, 2025 at 5:58 PM
For a decade Americans have benefited from a downward trend in the real cost of tomatoes (in red), even more than all fruits & veg (in green), compared to all groceries (in black).
Each is shown controlling for overall inflation, from FRED with updates here: fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=1MNZ7
2/3
Each is shown controlling for overall inflation, from FRED with updates here: fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=1MNZ7
2/3
PS, academic footnote for those interested in the use (and misuse) of Google trends data, a nice article from @floriankeusch.bsky.social and coauthors here:
The (mis)use of Google Trends data in the social sciences - A systematic review, critique, and recommendations
Researchers increasingly use aggregated search data from Google Trends to study a wide range of phenomena. Although this new data source possesses som…
www.sciencedirect.com
August 31, 2025 at 11:38 AM
PS, academic footnote for those interested in the use (and misuse) of Google trends data, a nice article from @floriankeusch.bsky.social and coauthors here:
The rise and fall of progressive idealism, as tracked by online search for vegan (vs. organic or vegetarian).
These data are global, you can click to see differences in timing and relative magnitudes here:
trends.google.com/trends/explo...
I'll call this the "Henry Vance Index" of idealism.
2/2
These data are global, you can click to see differences in timing and relative magnitudes here:
trends.google.com/trends/explo...
I'll call this the "Henry Vance Index" of idealism.
2/2
August 31, 2025 at 11:33 AM
The rise and fall of progressive idealism, as tracked by online search for vegan (vs. organic or vegetarian).
These data are global, you can click to see differences in timing and relative magnitudes here:
trends.google.com/trends/explo...
I'll call this the "Henry Vance Index" of idealism.
2/2
These data are global, you can click to see differences in timing and relative magnitudes here:
trends.google.com/trends/explo...
I'll call this the "Henry Vance Index" of idealism.
2/2
Yes indeed, and this page explains how to get the password: sites.tufts.edu/foodeconomic.... Should be quick and helpful to join the elist, and passwords should protect the files from appearing in search and AI training content.
Teaching materials – Food Economics
sites.tufts.edu
August 13, 2025 at 10:37 PM
Yes indeed, and this page explains how to get the password: sites.tufts.edu/foodeconomic.... Should be quick and helpful to join the elist, and passwords should protect the files from appearing in search and AI training content.