| Complacency is not recommended for the U.S. | | | | the average consumer is that the majority of |
| consumer this winter according to forecasters | | | | plastic resins manufactured by U.S. factories |
| who say that a wide range of products from | | | | are located along the Gulf Coast. Initially, |
| food to auto parts will see rises in retail | | | | the factories were shut down during the |
| prices. While food prices have risen over the | | | | storms. Secondly, the factories require |
| past decade, the impending costs will be | | | | natural gas to generate the power needed to |
| different, as they are expected to be the | | | | run the plastics factories. And thirdly, due |
| largest at one time over the past several | | | | to the short supplies of the raw materials or |
| years and not only due to the cost of | | | | resins used in the manufacture of plastic, |
| delivering goods but because of the overnight | | | | the three most common types have increased in |
| escalation of the cost of producing | | | | price between 20 and 30 per cent to date |
| plastic.And not dissimilar to the blame game | | | | since August 2005, with another projected 8 |
| which was played from Louisiana to | | | | per cent increase by the end of November |
| Washington, D.C. in the aftermath of | | | | 2005, according to Plastics News, a trade |
| Hurricane Katrina, we now see the corporate | | | | publication.Dow Chemical Co., for example, |
| sector using Katrina to advantage as well. | | | | which runs a plastics factory outside of New |
| First, we had the oil companies blaming the | | | | Orleans, LA in Hahnville, LA, was forced to |
| price of gas at the pump on the price of a | | | | cancel 1,000 contracts after Hurricane |
| barrel of oil, then blaming Katrina for the | | | | Katrina, including those with Rubbermaid, |
| shutdown of refinery operations and then on | | | | Inc. and the Clorox Company. That then |
| the lack of refineries in order process the | | | | translates into myriad products consumed by |
| imported oil the U.S. was receiving from | | | | the average American on a daily basis in |
| Europe, as a result of the shutdowns from | | | | which plastic is either a component of its |
| Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The U.S. | | | | manufacture or plastic containers or |
| Congress is still in the initial stages of | | | | wrappings which contain another product such |
| investigating how much of that is | | | | as food items or dry goods. For instance, the |
| palpable.But following the disaster in the | | | | price of a gallon of milk has risen |
| Gulf of Mexico, U.S. consumers will also | | | | approximately 15 cents since Hurricane |
| experience sticker shock beyond the pumps and | | | | Katrina because of the plastic bottles in |
| their monthly heating bills. Unbeknownst to | | | | which it is distributed. |