What’s your food situation?

[GreyishDays]

Just wondering how everyone is doing.

We had a good start with a Brexit stash. Have had a couple of click and collects and one normal supermarket shop. DH has been checking regularly for stock though. Our supermarket has been up and down in terms of stock.
We have most stuff, couldn’t get cornflakes last week and can’t get tinned tomatoes. Trying to cook with potatoes as much as we can as pasta is sometimes not available. Loo roll arrived as normal last week in the clock and collect.

I think we’ve been quite lucky and fortunate to be able to stock up in advance.

How’s everyone else doing? Missing major stuff and having to eat odd combinations or fairly complete now.

I haven't done a full shop in a supermarket for 5 years, we ave a Tesco delivery every week and I top up in the village shop in between. I also buy all our meat in the village butchers. I did stock up on tinned food and pasta for Brexit so we are fine.

However I can't get a delivery or click-and-collect slot now for love nor money so i am going to try to manage without the supermarket at all for the time being. I don't know how easy that will be. There is a Co-op in the next village which i can walk to and which is bigger than our village shop, so I'm hoping that I can go there or the things I can't get in our village.

Today I went to the corner shop near my office in my lunch break and they had everything you could think of - huge sacks of rice and pasta, eggs, flour, tinned tomatoes. Loads of bread as well, plus big bags of spices. The only restriction that I could see was a note by the flour saying "one bag per customer". Everything else seemed to be unrestricted.

I do understand why supermarkets and shops are restricting some items, but it is frustrating that a family of 5 adults has the same restrictions as a single person living alone. I appreciate that supermarkets don't know how many people live in one household so they are doing the best they can.

@bluebeck
That is not a thread I’d want to be a part of, did everyone think the world was going to end and they’d be no food. I mean blimey there’s been a Pandemic and there’s STILL enough food for all, they’d be even more if stupid pricks didn’t panic buy it all 🤦‍♀️

Actually, the pandemic has shown that while there is plenty of food 'around', the supermarket supply chains are quite badly hit by any widespread change in buying habits. It wasn't panic-buying that caused the shortages; it was the whole country buying a bit extra, not screeds and screeds, but an extra pack of this, a pack of that, etc.

www.kantar.com/Inspiration/FMCG/Accidental-stockpilers-driving-shelf-shortages-in-the-UK

Given that a lot more people are now at home for more meals, the rise in average spending is actually fairly low, given a lot of people eat lunches outside the home, maybe a meal a week, kids have school lunches, etc.

This whole thing has shown that the 'just in time' model can and will collapse under extreme circumstances, so I think the Brexit preppers were actually pretty savvy.

Getting the shopping wise I usually have it delivered but have managed to get click and collect. But i am shopping for elderly parents and two vulnerable people who do not live together as well as my own.

Food wise. Can not get meat, pasta, rice, eggs, flour, soap or handwash, toothpaste and have trouble getting washing powder and tinned goods, bread, orange juice, some fruit and vegetables, most frozen food.

Have been eating a lot of vegetarian as a result.

We're doing fine, managing to get mostly what we need including eggs and fresh fruit, veg and meat after the initial panic buying died down.

We're not fussy eaters though so happy to substitute things if necessary. We also don't eat much, if any, pasta, tinned tomatoes etc so haven't noticed the shortage of those things. Luckily we already had enough toilet roll to last until this week when I managed to get some more.

We got a big sack of potatoes a couple of weeks ago... and have been eating a lot of potatoes!

We already got bread, milk, eggs and OJ from the milkman and a fruit and veg box delivery, which we've continued. Have been a bit more creative with recipes, but we do have food!

Struggled to get nappies which spurred us on to potty train!

Ok for the moment, not been out since this started, doctor has told me to stay in and not go anywhere except the garden as I'm high risk and unlikely to survive if I get it due to how ill I get with the common cold even, needing steroids etc and having only just got over pneumonia couple months ago. Still not had my letter and the news about supermarket slots only being available for those that have the letter has left me feeling a bit panicked and now feeling unsure whether or not I will get one with the latest news. Currently have 2 slots already booked with 2 seperate supermarkets one for next week and one the week after. Also have 2 children to feed one with autistic tendencies and even if I chanced it would have no chance social distancing with him cause the way he is with his meltdowns. Feeling quite anxious about it all tbh now.

we also have dairy and soya allergies which makes it harder still

Grocery shopping takes forever now. But suddenly I have the time! I have to be more prepared. I’m not used to doing a weekly shop, and sometimes I can’t get exactly the things on my list and I need to be flexible. My bills seem a bit higher too, I think there are fewer specials.

But, we are eating well enough.

We're bizarrely eating better than ever. Fear of not being able to access food and fear of waste, plus needing to buy only exactly what we need, have meant that I've started properly meal planning for the first time. We've been having lovely meals since lockdown as a result. Previously I just kind of threw stuff together and didn't really think about what we would have beforehand as I could always just pop to the shops if I needed something or was craving something specific.

It's a bit more effort having to choose recipes and make sure food is rotated before it goes out of date, but on a daily basis it's less stressful than having to figure out last minute what's for dinner.

Do think that unless you are classed as vulnerable, then you should give up your Supermarket Slot. Gave mine up as I can still get to the local shops. Only fair way to do it ...

Floralnomad try Tesco or Asda for Goodfellas GF pizza. I have been able to get my DH some for when he gets in from work. Also Morrisons have GF pasta.

@musketeers123 are you refering to me? The doctor has said I am highly vulnerable and am not to leave the house except my own garden. If I get I'm unlikely to survive it but I still have had no letter and panicking about it cause once I've had that shopping if it's not sorted by then it might be the last shopping I can get to last remainder of the 12 weeks I'm to stay in.

No Wildchild ... you clearly state that you are vulnerable!?
For those of us that are not ... SHOULD give up slots as we can get to shops 🤗

I get milk and eggs twice weekly to doorstep

I also get fruit and vegetables and bread weekly to door step

And I've had a click and collect and have another one in two weeks

Also a Costco 6 monthly shopper so had been in January so had got lots of loo roll and household stuff then enough to last 6 months as that's what I always do

So we are fine really

We were ok, but now we are running out of various things. I'm fed up going to asda/lidl and walking away with fuck all. The lidl beside us is absolutely ridiculous.

Both DP and I are key workers and have limited times we can go and try and get some shopping. I really wish people would calm down with the panic buying, its extremely frustrating.

@musketeers123 oh ok lol

No problem here - West Dorset.

I walk down to my daughter's front garden once every 2 weeks and watch her children (8 & 9) for her,through her windows whilst she goes shopping.
She is effectively a one parent family as her Navy medic husband is on the front line in the Covid19 ward in Derriford for the forseeable.

Works well and she has managed so far to get what she needs.

Plenty here, except flour.

I've always tended to keep a decent store cupboard, so we're fine there. Loads of tins and dry goods. I stocked up with a home delivery just a few weeks before (not in anticipation of anything, I was just starting to run low and getting lots of things delivered means that I don't have to carry heavy items home). We used to get fresh food (fruit, veg, milk, bread, eggs) a few times a week from our local Co-op (small convenience store size) or Sainsbury's Local. That's a bit hit and miss now, but we're managing. We've not been to a proper size supermarket since the lockdown - I've just heard locally about the queues, and it's just easier to use our local shops, even though it's more expensive.

I've been trying to get a delivery slot for heavier items (no car) but no luck so far. Looking into other delivery services like fruit/veg boxes and meat delivery.

We have loads of loo roll, because I accidentally left two multipacks on an Amazon subscription. I meant to cancel them after the initial discounted delivery, but I forgot.

Same here I've been able to get everything that I want except for bread flour, also wouldn't dream of getting a delivery slot, walking to the supermarket and back with the backpack is like a 'free' exercise session😊👍

Everything in the shops here bar one week no fresh chicken or pasta and low on tinned tuna. Last time out they had pasta and plenty of meat but no flour. I was going to make pancakes otherwise would never have noticed.
Our meal plans haven't changed as the food is available. We have organised all our kitchen cupboards and everything is in date order now so I know what needs to be used first, but I bulk buy some things anyway whenever there's a sale on so had plenty of dog and rabbit food, toilet paper and cleaning stuff before this all started. It was the fresh stuff I needed. Only change is I can cut my trips to the big store to once a week and top up with fresh from the farm shop.

We've been doing really well,I don't know if it's just luck or if in part my DH has become amazing at food shopping.

We usually do a big monthly shop but the last big shop we did was for 3 weeks and that was about 10 days before we went into lockdown so we were lucky we weren't starting of with empty cupboards/fridge/freezer but since then my DH has managed to get most of the things we wanted.

The only thing we've struggled to get so far really was loo roll,pasta and rice.

We're out of Brie!

Fine here, I have always kept plenty of food at home (rural) and a well stocked freezer. Have more or less managed to get my regular online deliveries apart from the week of the 18th March (have one a fortnight).

Haven’t got things like salad leaves, tomatoes etc, a week after I shop until the next delivery.

It does make you more aware of waste! I haven’t wasted anything and have used veg that I might normally have thrown away (like month old carrots languishing in the fridge).