Hayne Begley, owner of Delta Biscuit Co., knows the effects of inflation. His company has experienced price increases of 200-300% for their raw materials over the past 12 months, Begley said.
"Beef is up like three times what we were paying a year ago," he said. "The biggest way we've experienced inflation is in our food costs over the last eight to 12 months. Like these gloves a year ago were $6 a box and now they're $18."
Local businesses around the country are starting to feel the burn as inflation is on the rise in the U.S. The past few months have seen a drastic rise in inflation, raising the costs for both businesses and consumers.
When asked what he would like to see happen to help resolve the issue, Begley to natural State News that he thinks there should be "a number of small measures taken to help kind of relieve some of the current stress off for small businesses."
Some experts attribute the inflation issues to the recession resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Economist Michael Pakko, chief economic and state forecaster for the Arkansas Economic Development Institute, talked about economic issues with the American Council of Engineering Companies of Arkansas on Nov. 10. Of note, Pakko said the recession that the pandemic sparked was short-lived, basically running from February to April 2020. The recovery that started thereafter is continuing. He also said that Arkansas has been better off than most other states because the state implemented few restrictions during the pandemic, according to Talk Business and Politics.
While Pakko was overall pleased with the state's performance, he was more concerned with national trends.
“As an economist who worked at the Federal Reserve for 16 years, or really more like 20 years once you incorporate my pre-grad school days, this situation reminds me too much of the 1970s and '80s when inflation, stimulus got out of control and we had to rein it in,” he said. Talk Business and Politics reported that he said some things to look for include increasing lockdown restrictions and debt market pressures created by the federal government's monetary policy.
There are some positive signs for Arkansas, such as the decline in unemployment rate, which recently reached 4%. However, rising costs are continuing to get worse.
Business owners, including Begley, report being thankful that they are operating in Arkansas, which has imposed fewer restrictions on businesses in the state, but they are still struggling with the rising cost of supplies and raw materials across the board.
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