Essential Shopping

[jelly79]

At what point are you deciding you need to do an essential shop...?

When you need a pint of milk? So little and often?

Or when you have run low / out of most things so you can do a bigger shop in one?

And as for milk I'd prioritise. My kids have it on their cereal but I've stopped putting it in my coffee if it's running low and I don't need anything else.

It's really not that hard for grown adults to adapt and change but suddenly it seems very few are able to. Even in a pandemic

Essential is slightly different to everyone.

I have a severe kiwi allergy, my son has a milk allergy, anything pre-made requires a read of the label as recipes regularly change. We don’t have a supermarket locally that has shopping, I can’t carry shopping home for three people that lasts a week.

My boyfriend did some food shopping for us today, he was only allowed two types of veg and two types of fruit, so that isn’t even enough fruit and veg for one day. If the restriction needs to carry on we will need to shop daily and even that won’t provide the nutrients our bodies actually need. The freezers were empty (apart from chopped chilli), but if they weren’t the notices said only two frozen items per person.

I’m a type one diabetic so I rely on veg especially as I can’t eat large quantities of carbohydrate due to my diabetes being particularly brittle. If I’m unable to have a suitable diet and therefore unable to manage my diabetes well I will be in serious danger.

Yes, people are different but those guzzling milk like there is no tomorrow and going to the shops when it isn't essential are spreading this virus.

In our case buying 2 cartons of milk a week really isn't guzzling milk.

I did a big supermarket shop last week.
I wont go to a supermarket for another 2 weeks at least but I will need bread and milk and possibly fruit and veg so will have no choice but to go to a local shop for it. I normally shop like this but I've been making sure I've got enough fresh to last as long as possible before I need to go again.

We're minimising the amount we go out, but with things out of stock and limits on the amount you can buy, I'd say we're doing a bigger shop weekly and a small top up inbetween. Leaving delivery slots for people that really need them.

crustyvrab you're lucky to have full freezers and pantry so of course you don't have to go out much. You shouldnt judge people who have less space and food available than you. In china people were allowed out once every 3 days which seems reasonable.

I’m going once a week where previously I went most days and popped in for my lunch too. I’m trying not to let our stocks get too low in case a tighter lockdown or rationing starts. Things change in a matter of hours so I want to be prepared! I might have to pop to the coop for milk though.

By the way, can you easily find stuff like bread or potatos? I struggle with getting such basics. My sister lives in Germany and they have loo roll shortage. My mum said shops in Poland are well stocked as panic buying is over. People FINALLY ran out of money and will eat their hundred pounds of pasta.

My local shops had zero bread products last week. Like nothing. No bread, no wraps.
DH is on the high risk list. I’m trying to make sure he eats particularly well at the moment. I’m good at stretching food out and being inventive, but I want to make sure that includes lots of healthy stuff for him.

"You shouldnt judge people who have less space and food available than you"

Sorry what? The people I'm referring to have more space than me and plenty of food as the shops they are using are suffering very few stock control issues now (apart from hand sanitiser and pasta).

One woman has been to the shops every single day, leaving the house in her car and returning with one or two items. The shop is within walking distance. She has already walked her dog past it once before the drive out for bread and a magazine.

Then she leaves her house in the evening for her "exercise". You guessed it, a walk past the shops and once into said shop for some Paxo. Pathetic. I'll judge her all I like.

Fgs stop policing people its not healthy

I'm struggling, shopping for 4 households (3 set of family members are isolating due to being extremely vulnerable) totalling 11 people. Trying to go once a week but tricky plus 2 different pharmacies for meds collection

I cannot do a weekly shop, I simply do not have the fridge space. I can probably just about.manage twice a week.

@WotnoPasta last week was pretty bad in the shops but we are being told now (involved in retail centres) that stocks are replenished now and although some things are still lacking there has been plenty of fresh things including bread.

Apparently farm shops have good stocks too and many are offering delivery services.

Hope you manage to get what you need, panic buying was ridiculous

Perhaps the 'rural' way of living it will become a bit more of a normal way of life for others after this?

Well I very much doubt it as I live in a first floor flat and barely have space for an under the counter fridge, let alone a chest freezer

Exactly.

Stop policing people shopping. They may need to buy more or go more often than you.

Those extra shops could be for vulnerable or self isolating people.

Ok @nitgel I'll block her

Haha, love how you know more about her than me. These are friends and close family members. They are not shopping for vulnerable people.

They have space, time, huge areas to store food, extra freezers........and an Asda order coming on Tuesday morning 😂. But you're right, I'll just cut them out of my life and then they won't tell me about their day anymore, much healthier

Once a fortnight

But I have a big house with two fridge freezers, cupboards, a pantry and one deep freeze

I used to live in a tiny flat and had to shop regularly

“ My local shops had zero bread products last week. Like nothing. No bread, no wraps.
DH is on the high risk list. I’m trying to make sure he eats particularly well at the moment. I’m good at stretching food out and being inventive, but I want to make sure that includes lots of healthy stuff for him.”

Ah this is so annoying, I am left with one bread in my freezer and I am scared to touch it, because I don’t know when I am going to buy another one. It literally makes me so angry, especially after I saw how people in Derby threw away ridiculous amount of food like cutlets, bread, bananas etc. People do not learn anything from this pandemic. Do we need ebola in Europe so people will finally start behaving like society and will respect the food that they bought?

@crustycrab sorry, what are you angry about?

Ah yes, did you do that patronising winky head tilt thing then? Sorry, that type of superior comment doesn't work.

I'm not angry. But I will be if people I regarded as the closest people to me kill me or my family with their reckless actions.

Up until now I've just been passing the time on a forum called.....oh "talk". We don't all have to have the same opinion here, but then you know that.

We have about 6 days of dinners left since my last big shop last week, but I am running low on breakfasts, snacks and lunches for them so I might have to do a shop sooner than I would like. We were lucky to get 2x 4 pint bottles of milk just over a week ago and that has lasted us until now (I don't go by use by dates, if it smells fine and doesn't curdle in my coffee its good). I've managed to make some bread today with some flour and instant yeast I already had in the cupboards so that will last us a few more days but I will need to get more.
My partner and I still have to work unfortunately so we are already out more than we want to be.

@Scrowy

I understand. It is sensible and we do have enough so that we'd not starve for a few weeks. For one thing I have stored a lot of food in my own body fat ready for just this type of scenario. I am all about creative storage in small spaces, right now I even have a small crate of food in the bedroom, which in normal circs I would find v annoying.

It's not easy to keep really good stocks in though. We are in a first floor flat with no outdoor space, a small combined fridge/freezer, and one living area that is kitchen/utility/lounge/diner in one room. There are some small upper wall cupboards as kitchen units and two small under counter cupboards. There is no other built in or full length cupboard or closet in the entire flat.

I have been planning to try and get more stuff set up storage wise but that is on hold for the moment due to the current situation.

I do have bread now (very little pasta!) but it took 3 attempts ûto get it and it was only because I was at the shop the same time the bread man was there!
They are limiting shoppers now. When I was in yesterday there was quite a bit of bread....
Pasta though.....

I did a big shop on Wednesday but today DD2 went out and topped up with fruit, bread, butter and a few other things. I am still adjusting to not shopping regularly so it will take time to get my head in the zone with regards to exactly what I need to keep us going for longer. I am good with dinners but breakfast and lunch seem trickier.