Countries on lock down: how do households get food?

[RedRed9]

Just that really. ^

The countries on lockdown (China, Italy, etc) how do they organise getting food and medication etc in? Are they given a specific time to go out? Do they allow supermarket workers to work?

I was wondering what we’d do if we went on a really strict, enforced lockdown.

I'm in Italy. We just go to the supermarket! Only one person from each household. The local council have organized a free service to deliver shopping and prescriptions to the over 70s.

Supermarkets are open as normal but there is a limit to number of people allowed in at a time and the cashiers are wearing masks and gloves.

You are allowed to go out for food. The government isn't going to order everybody to go into lockdown and then starve them to death. That would be counter-productive.

Supermarkets, petrol stations, newsagents etc stay open. They just do t let everyone in at the same time to allow more room for personal space.

Restaurants/take always are open but just for take out and delivery not to sit and eat in.

One person from each household makes sense. Although I wonder what single parents with young children do? Or is it one adult from each household and kids are allowed to come along?

Daft question here, but can you get any online deliveries from somewhere like Amazon? I don’t mean for food.

Online shopping deliveries from Amazon etc are going ahead as normal.

Not sure about single parent households with young kids. I was relieved when DH's office shut down as meant I could go to the supermarket and leave DS with him.

Even in 'lockdown' areas, people are still permitted to shop for food and visit pharmacies for meds.

There may be different arrangements, depebpndung on what lockdown actually means. China restricted the number of people leaving households and the frequency (one person every 3 days), other places enforce widely spaced queues as they only admit a certain number indoors at any one time

NoHunGosh out of interest how is that being policed?

I’m just thinking here in the UK some people just won’t pay attention to any Lockdown restrictions and we don’t have enough police to enforce it.

Or are Italians just better behaved than Brits?

Forgot to say though that whenever we keave the house we have to carry a piece of paper stating our 'essential' reason for leaving the house (work, medical, food shopping). The police are doing random checks and people without a valid reason (eg out for a drive because bored at home, been for dinner at a friend's house) face a fine or imprisonment! Couples who don't live together and live in different towns can't see each other.

Italians are generally less law-abiding than the Brits and in the region where I live and local press reported that in the first 48 hrs of lockdown police stopped over 1000 people and 50% of them were out for non-essential reasons so will be prosecuted.

That’s really interesting @NoHunGosh

Is it a piece of paper from the gov? What does it look like?

Who the heck is going to want to work on the checkouts ? Can’t see people volunteering

Sorry for typos and lack of punctuation!

Basically a form that you print at home with personal info (name, date of birth, official home address), reg number of car and a box to tick for 'work, medical, essential business'. The police are checking up with employers, asking for receipts from shops etc

This is the form if anyone is interested

How do single parents manage? Are they allowed to take children with them?

Also how do people manage that don’t have a printer at home? I would need to go out to go to the library just to print it

If we end up in lock down what do we think the chances of the supermarket staff getting PPE when I've heard stories about doctors not even having it....

What if you don't have a printer?!

Guess single parents would have to rely on goodwill of neighbours/online shopping. They are trying to discourage people from even taking their kids out for a walk. Haven't seen any kids in the supermarkets not sure if they are even being let in as there is masked security outside our largest local one counting number of people going in and reminding people to stay at least one metre apart when inside.

If you don't have a printer I believe that the police have copies for you to fill in.

I’ve got two children, single parent. Only just moved to the area so don’t know any neighbours. It would defeat the point entirely if I had to take them to friends or family before I went shopping!

DK - Shops are still open here and well stocked, but less people using them. Lots of firms here offering click and collect services, delivery and takeaways instead. Here they are depending on people to be sensible/behave well (my impression is the Danes tend to be very law abiding, social conformist and responsible: and a lot of things like parking etc seem to depend on an honour system that somehow works) Certainly in the shops it was pretty civilised, people keeping their distance in queues. We didnt take the DCs shopping this morning as one is a bit snively (No fever and pre corona) and they are of an age they can safely wait in the car but those with a toddler obviously had to have them along. There were fewer people with kids about in the shops and those who had them along seemed to have them under very strict control!