In addition to interviewing a very frightened realtor and experts that affirm there is no rice shortage here, BusinessWeek reveals that some local restaurateurs are going completely overboard when it comes to rice: "At the Costco in San Francisco, rice is all the rage. Not long after the 10 a.m. opening on Apr. 24, the warehouse club was well on its way to selling out the day's supply of Thai jasmine rice ... Real estate broker Mary Jane Galviso snapped up two bags—the limit imposed by this particular store. 'This is very frightening,' says Galviso ... [Says Costco chief financial officer Richard Galanti:] 'We've heard of cases where restaurant owners are hoarding three weeks' supply of rice in their basement, which is obviously more than they currently need, which makes the situation even worse.'" We had no idea how close to the truth that Daily Show skit about Costco rice hoarding actually was. [BW]
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