Can't get food, almost in tears

[mabelbagel]

There are two medium sized supermarkets in my town, and both are almost empty whenever I visit. No frozen stuff, no fresh, no eggs, no soya milk (I can't drink cows milk), no bread, no soup. The only thing widely available is snack /junk food and I can't live on that. I've checked the smaller shops in my town and they are also out of stuff. There are no online delivery slots either.

I am still going out to work, so all the people working at home are obviously getting there first. The shops my town are usually adequate but the next supermarket is about 15 miles away as we live in quite a rural area. I don't want to make the trip there if there's no food there either.

Just don't know what to do as it seems the panic buying won't end anytime soon and I'm fast running out of staple food

The only people ransacking the supermarkets and stockpiling are those with plenty of money.

Always knew the middle/upper classes were cunts.

Bit of a sweeping generalisation gluteus, don't you think? Do you know them all?

Meant to add small shops have been great here, not busy and well stocked. I was a right cunt and bought a small pack of mushrooms, broccoli and 2 courgettes at my 'corner shop' on Tuesday. But there was plenty left, and it was nearly closing time.

I have found butcher, bakery and green grocer all had pleanty of food, maybe not all of my favourite s, but still pleanty.

Greengrocer?? Where are you? (Scotland perhaps?). I have not seen a greengrocer for twenty years!!

Australia, and they still exist here.

Plenty round here (West Yorkshire) in markets and standalone shops on high streets and neighbourhood shopping parades.

I'm wondering where you are if you think the greengrocer is extinct?

Ah. Not very helpful to OP then weenurse!

Although I have heard things are pretty crazy in Australia ,too, with beaches full, schools still open and busloads invading more rural supermarkets so I hope all is well for you.

On a side note, would we not expect markets to close in lockdown should we get that far?

My parents live rurally - about 75 minutes outside m25. Their local village shops are relatively well stocked although apparently the local supermarket which again is in a rural road (medium sized but not a national chain) now has people driving from London to get food......

Barbara, I sometimes wonder where your average MNer is who has lots of diversity of shopping. It does rather emphasise (as someone pointed out upthread) that everyone assumes everyone ahs the same facilities.

I live near a dormitory town just outside home counties. the High Street is full of Cash Converters and closed down shops and there is now limited public transport. The large village I live in about 3 miles away has one shop. We have a Lidl , Morrisons and Sainsburys within driving distance but all are reporting crowds and stock issues. The M and S foodhall is bare. These types of towns are where you will see the death of the High Street type stories on the news. They exist.

Only those who live in the hipster bit of the town have a greengrocer , I suspect, although have never seen one.

There is an expensive farmers' market once a week in a posh town nearby. And your bog standard market in my nearer town. The posh town has baker and a butcher. Anyone SI, , elderly or generally immobile cannot get to these places. The farmers' market will cease next week.

Yes, I agree people could go back to a more old fashioned style of shopping but to say it is possible for everyone is rather crassly urbanite , middle class and over simplified. And In France in lockdown people visit one shop. they are not merrily wandering from market stall to market stall and shop to shop picking up bits.

@Piggywaspushed, supermarkets stripped but local shops still had produce.
Now supermarkets closed 8pm-7am.
Seniors shop 7-8am then others.
Found toilet paper yesterday Yeh as we were low.
Bondi beach closed today as people not listening.
Following Singapore ‘s model at this stage, but not as well as not enforced.
I work in a private hospital so we are taking all we can from the public system to free up beds.
I don’t think people feel it is real here yet.
I don’t think they can close markets for 3 months unless they start to home deliver food.
I do think there will be restrictions and rationing down the track.

Just so I could prove I wasn't talking out of my arse (it's been known!) I consulted yell.com. There are three listed greengrocers in the town I mentioned (which is pretty large ; the size of Lincoln without being anything like Lincoln sadly). Two are on the North side of the town and the other is indeed in the hipster area.

The nearest farm shop to me is 8 miles away.

To be honest, it's not really fruit and veg I want. Or not exclusively! Milk and bread and eggs and ketchup and marmite and sauces and fish fingers and yogurts would be nice too.

As I am in SI and DH will be on the 12 week list, home delivery is really the only way.

I'm always curious about these 'local shops' Besides the supermarkets we don't have shops that sell food, unless you count the newsagent and you want a diet if crisps, sweets and chocolates.

Oh yes, I forgot our weird (and not very clean) olde worlde filling station.

Perhaps I can survive on out of date sweets and energy drinks!

Piggy I don't think there is such a thing as a typical Mumsnetter.

Like you I live in a large village with a co-op, there's also a couple of tatty independents that mainly serve low income alcoholics judging by their stock.

We have most of the supermarkets in driving distance and a couple of simply foods on retail parks and in the shopping centre.

The greengrocers I referred to are in very much working class ex mining towns and neighbourhoods with large Asian and Eastern European populations. About as far from trendy, middle class or hipster as you can get.

Ramona’s kitchen now delivers hummus and falafel to your door. You can check them out as well if you are interested or if you know someone who would be 🙂

www.facebook.com/RamonasKitchen123/

Yes our local shops have biscuits, Mr Kipling cakes, sweets and a few tins of tomatoes, baked beans and pasta. The actual food items have been bought up.

I’m surprised by the number of people saying they have greengrocers, bakers, etc. These do not exist where I am now. I’ve lived here for nearly 30 years and what there was is long gone. Occasionally one starts up on the high street, but they always close down within months - too hipsterish and expensive for the area. Car ownership is not common too, so most people shop in the nearest supermarket - walkable - now stripped bare.

I'm always curious about these 'local shops'

I live in a (probably) average sized town, population around 100k. Not particularly affluent but there are pockets here and there. We have 2 Morrison's, a large Asda and several small ones, a big Sainsbury's and a few small ones, a Tesco local, 3 aldi, 2 Lidl's, an M&S food hall, a few co-ops, and a few Iceland, farm foods, heron dotted about as well as Nisa/Spa shops, independent grocer/baker/butchers and an oddly high volume of takeaways... no shortage of places to get food and at least 3 of these shops are walking distance for most people (I walked to 5 the other day because I needed loo roll and cat food, it took some searching). There are also at least 3 places delivering fruit and veg boxes with milk/bread/eggs, a farm shop pretty well stocked and a sweet and dessert delivery store also offering to deliver essentials.

I know places exist where there isn't this abundance, but I do think there are some who have other options they haven't considered. I've heard some people near me complaining they couldn't get their Asda shop and would have to go hungry when actually there is a farm foods next to the Asda and lidl less than 5 minutes walk away they didn't even consider.

Understood Barbara. We don't have towns like that around here. But, at risk of outing, Luton is about 20 miles away and has lots of local shops, true.

I live in a (probably) average sized town, population around 100k

From my perspective, you live in a very large town, and therefore have the shops and amenities that accompany that. The population of the county i live in is not much over 100k!

It is interesting hearing different people's experiences and of where they live. I have "slummed it" in this bit of outer London (but within the M25) where a lot of posher people or richer people or not to rich but want to live in a nice rural environment live. The upside is there are always people to do jobs like cleaning, plumbing, child care (we have more beds in sheds of any London borough not that that is a proud boast - I wish there were none). Our local hospital is 100% full though so I don't think there is much chance an ambulance would come here if I had it and were dying.

The other upside being in a mostly non white borough (63% at leat are BME) with lots of immigrants of all kinds is lots of very small shops = I have not counted those within 10 minutes or 20 minutes walk but a lot. If I went for the 20 minute walk (in my case I would drive) option there is one row of shops near a tube station which has about 3 green grocer ethnic shops with veg on trays on to the street in the open, another row of shops 5 mins away has at least 2 of those kinds of shops too. Then I have a waitrose, Tesco, Tesco express, morrisons, sainsbury's, lidl and smaller shops like spare certainly within 5 minutes' drive. We also have loads of NHS dentists too although I am not sure they are necessarily now open but it is as a result of the demographic I suppose.

Anyway that is beside the point and I hope those who cannot get any food are able to do so soon.

After DH whined a me, I went back to my Asda order to add mince. They updated my basket. Virtually none of it is coming. Including the meat. the cat food. Any of the sauces I ordered. Fresh pasta.

And they already know they won't have this by Tuesday.

It's mazing you have all these shops xenia. have you been inside to see if anything is in them??

I have a delivery booked for early April.

I was thinking of dropping a note to neighbours to see if they want anything, but I don't know if that will look like panic buying or if there will be rationing.