Thankyou so much everyone who is stockpiling

[Springsnake]

I’ve followed all advice to not buy more than I need ,baring in mind people on lower incomes who can’t afford to stock up .
So I’ve just been to Tesco to do my weekly shop ,and not a single toilet roll to be had ...
NOT EVEN ONE ,on any shelves.
I spoke to the manager and asked why stocks were not limited to one pack per person ,he didn’t care in the slightest,told me the delivery gets in at 4 am
Is that now what I have to do ,get up at 4 am just to get loo roll.

Hi nicky2512 I live in norn iron too but in a small town fairly well served by local shops, pharmacy, garage, post office, a few independent grocery stores, and the like. No problem getting anything really. There was a bit of a rush on for antibacterial hand soap in the local shop and chemists a week or so ago but everything else was fine, whereas the nearest big asda about 2 or 3 miles away was empty of these things. Go to small and local shops they could probably do with the business as well.

Me and DH always have a stockpile of everything, as we live in a village in the sticks with absolutely nothing here except a pub, and a Church. And our diddy little local town (4 miles away,) is always the first to run out of stuff, and the last to get it back in. So if we had been 'quarantined/self isolated' 2 weeks ago, we could have survived for several months (probably,) with the supplies we have.

Plenty of loo rolls. kitchen rolls, washing up liquid, washing powder, coffee, coffee mate, tinned food, frozen food, (pies/ fish/ veg/ pizzas/ garlic bread/burgers/various ready meals/chips etc,) and lots of packet stuff, (pasta, spaghetti, rice, etc...) as well as various jars of stuff, and talc, shampoo, shower gel, you name it. And we always have 3-4 boxes of cat food in. And lots of dry cat food. We also have lots of stuff in the fridge... yogurts, butter, cream, condiments, onions, fresh potatoes for baking, cheese, etc etc...

The only thing we would run short of is bread, salad, and milk.

But yeah, being rural/living in the sticks, does make you get into the habit of stockpiling.

I have also not seen the same kind of hysteria in the midlands, that I am seeing on the news (and hearing about.) Where are the areas where it's happening?

I think the accusations of selfishness and greediness are a bit excessive tbh. If lots and lots of people all buy just one extra pack of pasta or toilet rolls, that's hardly greedy, and yet collectively it will deplete the shelves

Yes exactly this. Apparently everyone knows someone who saw someone else with 150 toilet rolls and 50 kilos of pasta . The vast, vast majority of shoppers have not done that but then it suits some posters to pretend that those of us who have stocked up responsibly have been “panic buying”.

Most of these complaints basically boil down to Waaah, it’s not fair that I couldn’t get what I wanted when I wanted it. Well, what’s so special about you that all the other people in the supermarket should have decided not to buy the things they and their family use/eat on the off chance someone else might want it?

The only thing I can't buy anywhere is hand sanitizer. Everything else is fine
Mystified.

@Bunnyfuller totally agree with you

@mauriceandalec - it’s the same thing. Preppers just got lucky that covid-19 reared it’s head during their panic buying

Christ how many times man

It's like those people who think council houses are free....

@Finfintytint

I'm clearly talking about those who have been panic buying the last few weeks, then as they're sorted, are being judgey rats to everyone else. A prepper isn't going to buy 10 bottles of bleach in one go, are they?

Shops will start bringing in more per-person limits, but in my opinion, these should have been in place earlier. People simply can't be relied upon to be decent and reasonable. We live in such an utterly selfish society.

It's funny the mindset people get in. I haven't noticed any shortages in my area, yet had the following conversation with DP the other day:
DP " maybe we should stock pile on essentials"
Me "why? There are no shortages"
DP " what if we get ill and have to self isolate?"
Me " we can do an online shop and have it delivered"
DP " what if we are too ill to order online"
Me "... if we were that ill we'd be in hospital..."
He's a lovely sensible bloke most of the time!

Feminine hygiene products were really scarce on the shelves at my local Sainsbury's. Gonna be fun at the end of the month!!!!!

Why loo roll though? It seems most places its loo roll that's going, we use a 4 pack a week, went to do a weekly shop today and only pack available was a 9 so hopefully im prepared. my sister had a dooms day cupboard and had totally panic bought tinned foods of things she would never normally eat.. I really wouldnt know what to stock because my nan told me to never or always try to avoid letting my cupboards get below a certain level of thimgs canned and dry goods 1 or two tins of beans, tomatoes, sweetcorn, soups, stiff to make bread, emergency milk (powdered) as she calls it... just simple things and inexpensive things... its pay dividends last handful of years while I've had every bug going I must say xx

it’s like those people who think council houses are free

And disability cars. 🤣

And what if when it gets the point of self isolating that so do the delivery drivers of your online shop and online deliveries are not available?

Or are the people who felicitate your online shop immune?

And disability cars. 🤣

Heh yep. Same category of people We can add those who don't understand the difference between prepping and panic buying.

See Toastiemaker you’re assuming the packers and delivery drivers will be operating at full capacity but what if some of those people are ill or self isolating? If you and dh are ill then there’s a good chance lots of other people will be too, they’ll also want online delivery slots.

As to if we were that ill we’d be in hospital well, you’d hope but if lots of people are that ill the hospitals will be overwhelmed and you may need to fend for yourselves. I’m sorry but imo this is just an example of how complacent so many of us are. Your DP was being sensible!

Toastiemaker, I’m with your DH in this

Hospitals may be overflowing

Go to aldi.. plenty there

No, there aren't. I'm in London and tried 2 branches today, to no avail. Also no

Rice
Pasta
Handwash
Bleach
Ketchup

& likely lots of other stuff missing but those are the things I was looking for. Maybe they get morning deliveries, shame for people who are working and can't shop till evening tho.

@Toastiemaker

Think a bit deeper on the supply chain. No one is immune. As it is, 1 delivery driver down and there’s chaos.

Do people really have no grasp of infrastructure?

No shade, but failing to see how doing a big shop or stocking up is any different to panic buying.

Just call it what it is.

We had a panic buy a couple of weeks ago when DH’s colleagues were isolated after coming back from China after CNY.

We didn’t want to be in a position where they were , having to have people drop off food daily, mainly as we don’t have family near us.

We were just lucky that our panic buy was 4 weeks before everyone else started to panic buy.

Hey Crazymaisienumber9
I did manage to get most stuff in the wee garage down the road. They have never been as busy Unfortunately at twice the price!! I’m a bit further away from any bigger shops though and relying on the local one for everything would get a bit too expensive. I’m going to give Asda another go tomorrow and try to get there a bit earlier!

We might have to wait a little longer for delivery, granted, if supply chain is disrupted, but I doubt the food supply chain will shut down completely. Also we are in the fortunate position of being relatively young with no underlying conditions so we would make a good recovery at home, at least that is what the experts are saying. This isn't the zombie apocalypse... or is it?

Looking at the photos on my local facebook group, our Aldi does have loo rolls.

So for those who wouldnt dream of buying a single extra tin of beans, what's your plan when you or your family get sick? Wait til you're good and infectious then head out to stock up?

This has been coming for weeks.

I keep stock anyway because I've been left empty for financial reasons in past and then another awful time both kids and I all got sick at same time. It's really not clearing shops to get a bit extra each time. This has been going on since early jan.

For all we know there’s absolutely no one who’s actually been selfish/greedy/whatever - it only takes 500 people to each choose to buy one extra item for there to be a temporary shortage.

One of my colleagues told me that she doesn’t need to buy anything extra, as she’s going to do an online order if she gets quarantined or ill... good job all of those Tesco shelf pickers and shopping drivers have magical immunity and will keep on working 🙄🤔