How the other 0.01% live

A FOOD crisis is developing in Britain, though obviously not so severe as the impending catastrophe in the world's poorest countries. Britain's food prices are rising at a faster rate than for 17 years,

A Sunday Times survey on 13 April suggested that some 65% of people are more likely to check prices in the supermarkets after recent price hikes. But an article in The Guardian makes you wonder whether some super-rich individuals check food prices to make sure they're paying enough.

The news that a cup of coffee that had passed through a civet cat's digestive system was selling for £50 a cup made The Guardian grub around for more examples of ridiculously expensive food.

There was an £85 sandwich containing black truffles, a $1,000 pizza with caviar and lobster tails and a £1,500 pizza including shavings of 24-carat gold! They found a salad for £600 using beluga caviar and a marmalade for £5,000 that also includes gold. Rich idiots who buy these are eating the wealth of nations rather than creating it.

There was an £8,000 pie of expensive beef, mushrooms and truffles cooked in Chateau Mouton Rothschild - a mere slice would set you back £1,000. A $14,500 dessert is a 'fruit-infused confection' with a chocolate sculpture holding a real gemstone. At a time of increasing starvation, such pointless luxury is an insult to the world's hungriest people.