AIBU to wish people would stop using flour for play dough

[Outtedagain]

Just that. Some people, like me, want to cook with it. I have just worked out (correctly I think) from Facebook feeds featuring play dough recipes that this is contributes to there being no flour.

eating is essential
Playing with potential food stuff isn't essential

Eating flour isn't essential though, is it? That's a really flawed argument. Using flour for play isn't depriving anyone of food

eating is essential

Eating flour or flour based products is not.

Having grown up in Africa, people here have never actually known what it’s like to not have any food. So you can’t get flour. Unfortunate, but have something else instead.

I am a child of African immigrants who did go hungry (seems you might be of the richer sort). Growing up leaving even leftovers was a big deal and mum would often make a meal out of them for herself before she touched the fresh food. The idea of wasting food as toys is repugnant to me - especially considering kids are happy playing with anything.

We've been baking bread instead - as for it being un-eaten... bread in this house lasts about a second after leaving the oven as we're all hot crusty bread fiends in this house. Not had problems getting flour to be honest - Aldi had it in.

I agree OP, a waste of food. Make and bake cakes/bread/pastry with kids instead.

I’ve not had an issue getting flour.
I, don’t use it for play dough and I only bought one plain this week and one self raising 2 weeks ago as I didn’t have any in the house. Not sure that everyone who is buying it has done to make play dough

Growing up leaving even leftovers was a big deal and mum would often make a meal out of them for herself before she touched the fresh food. The idea of wasting food as toys is repugnant to me

Same here.

So, can anyone clarify how we are “all going to suffer” if people use their flour for playdough?

Pasta: can buy in the supermarket,
Bread: can buy in the supermarket
Most sauces: can buy in the supermarket
Pancake batter: can buy in the supermarket
Breaded chicken/pork/whatever else needs flour: can buy in the supermarket
FGS you can even buy cake mixes... in the supermarket.

So all this talk of people needing food, and suffering is just hysterical bollocks.

My local supermarket does not sell clay, plasticine or Fimo. I could drive to the superstore .... but no unnecessary journeys. I could order from amazon ..... but won’t anyone think of delivery drivers. So no these items aren’t available in all supermarkets.

Breaded chicken/pork/whatever else needs flour

Use crushed Doritos.

@soupdragon ... crushed chili heatwave doritos 😂

Use the end of the (purchased) loaf in the processor to make breadcrumbs?

Honestly, crushed Doritos on chicken is amazing!

I have loads of flour (bought way before this happened) mainly for making bread but I can't get hold of yeast so yes, I think I will use some for playdoh as at least it's being used right now and not sitting in a cupboard. And don't suggest soda bread, sick of it!

It'll probably end up being eaten by the dog anyway so is that OK?

@AlternativePerspective - everything you pointed out is expensive and processed. Some of us want to cook from scratch and others need to. Growing up mum would make a bag of flour last a week for our one meal a day (we had school dinner as our second) combined with whatever cheap veg was on offer (she would often buy rice by the cup from the local Indian grocers as she couldn’t afford a whole bag).

LOL at the idea that kids making play dough are responsible for flour shortages and famine, because anecdotally a few kids have been seen with play dough on FB

Give me strength.

Adding Doritos to shopping list. Assuming you dip in egg first? Maybe that’ll set off the egg police mind.

Oh dear, I'm with Abracad.
How awful that we are now policing how people are using flour.

And I doubt really anyone is buying it with the specific intention of making playdough. It's more likely they are at their wits end trying to entertain their child with the stuff they have in the house and listening to all the screaming posts on here about not ordering or buying non-essentials. Once something is purchased and in someone's home, they can smear themselves in it and prance around their front room for all the difference it makes to anyone else.

Oh. I can't get doritoes for the life of me!!!

There's plenty of flour where I live. How weird that there are patches of the uk where there are shortages - I wonder whats causing it. I can't believe it's people making salt dough because usually you keep it once you make it so it lasts ages.

Make and bake cakes/bread/pastry with kids instead.

We’re doing that as well. We’ve got three boxes of cake mix :) so my kids are very well entertained.

Ooh playdoh can be home made, why had I never realised that before Anyone got a good recipe to share, is it easy to make?

This is from a book of activities we got at DD's MMR appointment last week

Anyway,in case anyone missed this post from earlier...

Making play dough has got absolutely nothing to do with the flour shortage in the shops.
For the main part, it's an issue with logistics. There is actually plenty of flour in the mills, but their production system is geared up to supply bakery factories and wholesalers, in huge sacks. Only 4% of their production line normally goes to supermarkets, in bags of usually 1.5kg. It's not straightforward to alter the production line to accommodate the supermarket, which is why we're seeing empty shelves.