One reason could for food and rent prices going up could be caused by inflation; another reason could be due to a high demand for food and housing.

There is huge demand for housing but there is a limited supply of it; increasing housing supply could slow down rent increases. Amending zoning laws to allow for higher density housing can help; however, it could be difficult as many anti-housing advocates such as "NIMBY's" will bring forward lawsuits to prevent more housing from bieng constructed. This is evident in California where NIMBY's will bring forward lawsuits citing CEQA laws in order to prevent more housing form bieng constructed. This is also evident in Santa Monica where much of the city is zoned for low-density housing, which is why it lacks talls buildings as one can see in the Miami skyline. Another reason is due to a lack of adequate public transportation which makes it less feasible to build upwards due to a higher density of people. 

You can help make housing more affordable by joining a local YIMBY activist group or r/yimby on Reddit.
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