 SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) -- Since January, the price of rice has jumped more than 100 percent around the world, and this means Bay Area stores are now changing policies for their customers.
A 20 pound bag of basmati rice at Costco sold for $8.99 just two months ago. Today it’s nearly doubled at $15.99.
A spokesman for Costco Mountain View says some customers are hoarding rice by buying a membership, and then trying to buy 30 or 40 bags of the grain. This has lead store officials to put limits on the amount of rice one person can buy, based on their previous spending patterns.
Analysts point to many factors that have lead to the global rice shortage, one of them being that the U.S. government is encouraging the use of biofuels made from corn and soybeans. This means that fewer farmers are growing rice.
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KCBS' Matt Bigler reports
