An interesting new article from The Guardian re: stockpiling and why it isn’t as easy as the government suggest

[UglyCathKidstonBag]

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jul/26/stockpile-food-no-deal-brexit-dream-on?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Well worth a read and fairly sobering stuff.

Where exactly are companies supposed to put all this extra product? How do they pay for creating it and housing it for months on end?

FFS have we all gone collectively mad?! Why is Brexit even happening on these terms?

chickaxe - 2/10 .

I'm outside of the UK thank goodness, but worried about ageing DPs. Although they mostly seem to live on cuppasoup so will be able to last for weeks given potable water.

pennycarbonara

I’ll ask DH what the study was, he was the one that found it

@caroldecker - it is rather miserable having this spectre raised by e.g the Brexit Minister and others . So you get some stuff in so it doesn't have to be.
Sometimes you take your head out of the sand. Just an idea.

@MarcieBluebell - as a prepper (so I think about this stuff more than most) I agree that a problem with water supply post Brexit is less likely than a problem with food supply post Brexit. However, like anything, water supply relies on people getting to work to operate it and parts getting to the facility to fix any problem. A lot of it is automated with emergency back ups etc but it still needs people.
Any hiccup can potentially affect it to some degree - bad weather for example.

I am a hardened remainer but all this talk of shortages is quite honestly, ridiculous.. i had to check it was'nt April 1st.

all that will happen if there really is no-deal, is an extention of the art50 negotiating period and/or we ll drop into a transition period where we will continue paying in and the eU will keep things as they are.

The reason i believe this is that it is not in UK or the EUs interests to have civil unrest/riots/state of emergency in the UK, it would ensure that the Tory party would never be re-elected and TM will not want to be party to that, so will agree to any demands from the EU to keep the borders open.

I'm not a prepper, don't think Brexit will be a disaster (overwhelmingly negative but not disastrous in the short term), but I have stashed away about 8 main meals (rice and tins) in case of short term supply bumps. Why not? I was born in the 60s so power cuts were a normal part of growing up, so I always have candles and matches anyway. I have a camping gas stove and a barbecue anyway. Other than that I don't lead a miserable life at all, thanks for your concern caroldecker.

The whole point of putting stuff by is just in case.
My prediction is a bit of a hiccup. Lots of complaining and blaming. A depressing personal tragedy that shakes us all. Clunky return to a more expensive normal. More complaining that "this wasn't what we voted for" and people like me grumbling " what did you feckin' expect?".
But I have stuff in in case the above plays out in a way which means I can't buy food in the short term.

Sadly unconvincing effort chickaxe but perhaps try on the other thread.

Anyway, you and carol must have missed the latest narrative which I have been informed of by other Leavers, which is that stockpiling is the sensible thing to do (and has been for decades apparently).

Actually, I personally don't really think we're heading for a food riots/power cuts/eating our pets scenario, and therefore I'm not really prepping as such, just putting the odd extra tin or bottle in my trolley each week. I'm more with jasjas in hoping that we will pull back from this belligerent insanity and at least sort out a temporary transitional deal.

BUT! If today I were to simultaneously run out of bread, milk, vegetables, painkillers, cash, petrol and have a freezer breakdown, I’d be pretty annoyed but am sure that I could step out of my door and restock all of the above now. How many people have complete cast-iron certainty that this all will continue to be the case as we make the transition from one set of systems to the other? Let alone in the aftermath of a No-Deal Crash to Freedom? I've seen disruption and shortages caused by far smaller and simpler events than this.

But if you are 100% confident, then do nothing. Do nothing at all - not a grain of rice or tin of beans, to keep your freezer empty, no petrol in car, no cash. Feel free to type "Hysterical scaremongering" on every thread that mentions prepping.

If everything does turn out fine, I'll have a bunch of stuff that I will be using anyway so it's not a loss to me. If there are a few days/weeks of disruption on the joyous leap into the Sunlit Uplands, I'm not the one who is going to have to say "Sorry DC, this week's food is the last turnip from the shop, because Mummy was too embarrassed by a bunch of angry pixels on an Internet talkboard to set aside some tins."

On seconds thoughts, maybe some uht milk, pasta/rice spuds frozen veg, a few tins etc might be wise.
I think i might have placed to much faith in TM's intelligence? its not like she has shown much of that in the last 2 years lol! .

all that will happen if there really is no-deal, is an extention of the art50 negotiating period and/or we ll drop into a transition period where we will continue paying in and the eU will keep things as they are.

The EU have already made it very clear that an extension of article 50 will only be considered if there is a major political shift, such as a second referendum. They will not consider it just to allow the current wrangling to be extended.

The transition period only happens if the withdrawal agreement is signed. No signed agreement, no transition. Theresa May has said no prime minister would sign the withdrawal agreement as it stands because of the NI backstop. We're still waiting for her alternative backstop.

The problem is knowing how much to stockpile.

I tend to have 4 tins of toms/beans/tuna etc in the cupboard then I'll have another 4 in reserve so I always have 4 in the cupboard and top up from my reserve.

How much stockpile will I need?

I work in the food industry and don’t think most people realise how little stock is ever held by either the manufacturers or the supermarkets. The company I work for never have more than 3 week’s worth of stock in our warehouse and aim for 14 day’s worth. Brexit or not, it doesn’t take much of a blip in the supply chain for shortages on the supermarket shelves.

It’s sensible to have some additional, non-perishable food in your house, ideally of product you will eat anyway and just top up once used.

*all that will happen if there really is no-deal, is an extention of the art50 negotiating period and/or we ll drop into a transition period where we will continue paying in and the eU will keep things as they are.

The reason i believe this is that it is not in UK or the EUs interests to have civil unrest/riots/state of emergency in the UK, it would ensure that the Tory party would never be re-elected and TM will not want to be party to that, so will agree to any demands from the EU to keep the borders open.*

This is partly correct - it is still highly likely that the government will step back from the brink, agree the Irish backstop and the other tricky issues, and we will enter a transition (which will need to be extended beyond 2020). Or that there will be a GE or a referendum leading to the extension of A50 (requires unanimous agreement from the EU27) or its withdrawal (can be done unilaterally).

But it is still possible that UK govt incompetence will result in no deal. It is wrong to say that we will simply "drop into" a transition period, because this requires agreement on complex issues such as the Irish backstop. Without a withdrawal agreement there could be serious disruption and it makes sense for people to prepare for this if they can. No sensible person should rely on the most incompetent government of my lifetime for risk mitigation.

How much stockpile will I need?
No one knows. But luckily the wonderfully organised and prepared government is apparently issuing some leaflets to advise us later on, so they can go towards your emergency toilet-paper store.

I'm surprised if most people don't have at least 3 days of edible calories in the house. Wouldn't 7 days worth be quite standard as bare minimum (most people only do one 1 shop/week)? maybe I'm more of a hoarder than I thought!

Most reasonably well-off working families who live in sufficiently spacious accommodation, sure. Young people, "just-managing" families, old people on low incomes ... not so much. A lot of these people live day to day and buy what they can afford when they need it. My mum is in her 80s and pops out to the shops most days, she might have food in for 2-3 days but beyond that she'd have a problem unless she had stocked up specifically. She has space, but she eats most fresh foods and she doesn't like waste. I'm still reasonably confident that the worst won't happen (recent news is starting to turn around the public discourse) but if there is no deal by February I'll be seriously considering ensuring that she is out of the country in late March.

My grandmother always told me to 'be prepared' and have staple stocks of essentials, which I've always done. If people want to ignore the warnings and stick their fingers in their ears thats their look out!

"How much will I need?". Three days is the basic. Imagine being snowed in for three days and plan for breakfast , dinner and tea (I'm northern. It's what we call it round here ) for three days. Plus and drinks or snacks or treats you would have.
More is better (if you have the space) but 3 days is a good start.
Imagine the odd bump or scrape in the mix and have first aid in.
Learn how to get your local radio station on the radio for updates - if you don't already.
Don't rely 100 % on the freezer. Not because of apocalyptic power cuts but because of Sod's law.

We were seeing empty shelves before the stockpiling was mentioned here.
They were empty shelves in several supermarkets.

Sainsbury’s staff posted on FB it was because they were short staffed. Don’t know about the rest of them. This was about a month ago.

lot of these people live day to day and buy what they can afford when they need it

so the usual... us "established elite" are gonna be fine but those on the margins (who were more likely to vote for Brexit) are the ones who will suffer.

Oops, I forgot, I'm "virtue signalling" since as a Remainer elite I only pretend to care about those at the margins. Ho hum.

if Brexit means I finally persuade my kids to try lentils, might not be all bad.

My ds is off to Aberdeen Uni in September, so I can't stockpile for him At least the cupboards in his Uni flat kitchen are lockable

I suppose we could take up a care package in March (and make sure to fill up as soon as we get back )

I'm in Australia and I'm seriously beginning to think about what sort of things I might be able to post to relatives in the UK...like, what might be needed etc. If it did get bad, what might I be able to send I wonder? Chocolate here is terrible! Nobody would want that. It's too far to send anything fresh!

Ajas posted items have to go through customs too.(Albeit not at ports if you're using airmail.

Whilst there is talk of importing medicine by air freight, that is probably with some special fast tracking. It wouldn't be waiting with personal parcels.

We were seeing empty shelves before the stockpiling was mentioned here.
They were empty shelves in several supermarkets.

Sainsbury’s staff posted on FB it was because they were short staffed. Don’t know about the rest of them. This was about a month ago.

^
Do you have any links?

Actually I found this
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/supermarket-empty-shelves-anger-baffled-12979255

And

www.express.co.uk/news/uk/994539/Morrisons-Tesco-Sainsburys-asda-co-op-empty-shelves-twitter

No idea if it is related to stockpiles though.

I remember right at the start of the year there were huge issues with restocking shelves and many supermarkets struggled with fresh produce. It could be the same situation?