• Los Angeles Times, Thursday, April 24, 2008 11 AM

Sam's Club customers will no longer be allowed to purchase more than four bags of jasmine, basmati or long-grain white rice on each visit. The policy involves only bags weighing 20 pounds or more and does not affect smaller packages sold at the store or its sister Wal-Mart outlets. And some Costco stores are restricting customers to two bags of rice a day, but it doesn't plan to limit sales nationwide.

Internationally, shortages of basic commodities--including rice, wheat and some oils--have led to protests and riots, prompting concern about food security in many poor countries. Retail experts say there is little evidence of "panic" hoarding by the public in the U.S., however. It appears that restaurants and smaller retailers have been buying up most of the stock, expecting that prices will continue to rise.

Prices for many foods, including beer, bread, coffee, pizza and rice, are rising rapidly here as the nation contends with its worst bout of food inflation since 1990. The cost of groceries is climbing at an annual rate of about 5% this year. But with the exception of rising prices, the U.S. has escaped the problems seen in other countries.

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