Surging prices of tortillas and other ingredients of Mexico’s widely-consumed tacos are squeezing consumers and becoming a headache for policy makers. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, with an eye on next month’s midterm elections, has called for prices to be kept in check. Meanwhile, the country’s central bank points to a historic drought as the major cause of the sticker shock, while debating ways to alleviate it. “The spike we’ve seen in fresh food as a result of climate change should remind us that central banks also have a role to play in sustainable financing and reducing the risks of climate change,” Deputy Central Bank Governor Irene Espinosa said in an interview last week. “This can turn into a snowball that generates bigger inflationary pressures.”
