Do we genuinely need to stockpile?

[thunderthighsohwoe]

In light of this morning’s news, I have started to wonder if we genuinely do need to stock up in the event of a no deal Brexit? None of us (touch wood) require any ongoing medication, though 9mo DD has a sensitive tummy when it comes to milk and tolerates HiPP best. I’ve a feeling cows’ milk won’t go down well when she’s 12mo, and was planning to try almond milk or similar as a back up.

Should we be stocking up on HiPP/milk alternatives/Calpol etc?

Luckily we’re just switching to reusable nappies and wipes, so that’s one less thing to think of I guess.

i think we are going to get several bottles of calpol/nurofen but from what i read its the perishable stuff that is going to be in short supply. is that right?

The stockpiling is what will contribute more to the shortages than anything else.

Not at present it won’t as the shops can easily restock. Buying an extra bag of pasta isn’t going to bring the country to its knees. Unlike the fucking brexit shitshow.

No. We do farm a lot in this country and for all the scare mothering (it isn’t going to be good to be fair) companies have been planning for a long while, I work with several good companies, and while they need to sort the bloody labelling out, there are plans in place. It will hit prices not availability.

It will hit prices not availability

So only the wealthiest will be able to buy food, that's good then!

Not stockpiling. Might throw an extra bag of rice and lentils in the pantry, but that will be the extent of it.

my husband has got an extra 2-3 months worth of his heart medication stockpiled as he needs it every day and if he doesn't have it will end up in hospital or worse.

I'm probably going to buy some extra tins and some frozen fruit next month (5 week so extra housing benefit payment) I generally do that anyway for the skint months. and if prices skyrocket at least it shouldn't hit us too hard as we are on a tight budget. we usually have a bottle or 2 of uht milk (oat for me and cows for dds) incase of illness or snow etc.

I've been buying paracetamol/ibuprofen in my shopping each week too. that has already increased in price quite a bit in some places. from 20-30p up to 40-50p a pack. it's only dd2 that has Calpol and we have some of that already.

have you looked into almond as I'm sure its not recommended for 12 months. that and oat milk. unless things have changed in last 7 years! If they have ignore me!!

OP, if you read the most recent stockpiling threads on this part of the forum, you will understand why people here think it's a good idea, and why 'forward purchasing' at this time won't have an adverse effect on supplies.
As you have specific needs with such a young child, I'd absolutely encourage a bit of planning for the months ahead.
Hopefully it won't be necessary, but what's the worst that will happen if you have a well stocked larder, freezer and medicine cabinet?
For all the people scoffing, it's only in very recent times that people have shopped in the manner we do today, letting things run out before we go shopping, or just grabbing a few bits for the evening meal.

have you looked into almond as I'm sure its not recommended for 12 months. that and oat milk. unless things have changed in last 7 years! If they have ignore me!!

Almond and oat are ok although almond can be high in sugar, it's rice milk you can't give to under 5s. I'm stockpiling oat milk for my DC as the one recommended by the dietician is made in Sweden and already has supply issues around veganuary etc.

I plan to have enough in the cupboard that I can avoid the shops for several days when the penny drops among my neighbours.

Purchasing now will REDUCE pressure on shops when those without money or space are forced to purchase.

Its the same principle as having enough food, loo roll, medicine and toothpaste in to last a few days of really bad weather.

No country can afford panick buying and if everyone stockpiled now, yes there would be shortages. The supplies cannot be available immediately if millions of people buy way more than usual! Of course prices will go up. Demand will outstrip supply. That’s what happens. We produce around 50% of our food but it’s seasonal. We are already facing a shortage of vegetables.

I would try and get enough medicine before 31 Oct but this is all avoidable if we just dropped Brexit.

No there's no need. We 'll get the same kind of products imported from China and America instead. European sourced products will still be available but a little more expensive

"The stockpiling is what will contribute more to the shortages than anything else."

Rot. There is a difference between stockpiling and panic buying.

Supermarkets normally operate on an extremely tight turnaround of goods, to avoid having to store them for very long. They will be buying and bringing in extra goods to cater to extra demand, which they will have predicted/modelled.

Buying extra now - plenty of time in advance - is not going to contribute to shortages because supply of pretty much everything is unaffected at present. If you go to a supermarket today, you will find everything is working normally.

Panic buying extra when goods are running low, i.e. after a no deal Brexit when lorries are queuing for miles at the ports and goods literally cannot get into the country, will contribute to shortages.

Food supplies will be prioritised, so think about other things that life might be a bit grim without - loo paper, washing up liquid, shampoo etc and buy one extra.

Consider UHT milk if you can't face coffee without, a few extra tins etc. Think of the store cupboards of the wartime (now pensioner) generation (your parents or grandparents) - a few extra (longlife) versions of what you consume anyhow. Not an Armageddon mountain from scratch.

'just in time' supply chains are never shockproof, so move away from that if it's your domestic buying plan.

"No there's no need. We 'll get the same kind of products imported from China and America instead. European sourced products will still be available but a little more expensive"

And how are these goods going to get here? Presumably via the same logistics channels that may well be completely and utterly blocked in the event that a no deal Brexit brings chaos at our borders.

It's all very well saying we will get the same sort of products from China and the US but that's a bit difficult when there's no trade deal so what do we do in the meantime, sit around and twiddle our thumbs saying "everything will be fiiiiiine"

"The stockpiling is what will contribute more to the shortages than anything else."

I have 100+ rolls of toilet paper stockpiled. (70% of loo roll is imported)

How does this contribute to future shortages? I won't be buying it in October/November which helps people who need loo roll.

Stockpiling is silly. It will literally be the cause of the shops running out of things. If everyone who usually buys 1 tin of baked beans buys 6, they'll run out 6 times as quickly. So those of you who are stockpiling are just exacerbating the problem.

All those lovely extra air miles, Beautiful3 Everything being flown in will be so good for the environment.

A trade deal is going to take VERY much longer than any of these stockpiles will last! It's really to see people through a few weeks of severe logistics problems that experts are predicting might happen.

"Stockpiling is silly. It will literally be the cause of the shops running out of things. If everyone who usually buys 1 tin of baked beans buys 6, they'll run out 6 times as quickly. "

Yes because supermarkets run out of everything over Christmas don't they? There's literally no food in them by the 23rd December.

OH WAIT.

@accidentalsugarbaby, no, people who have already stockpiled/stock up slowly, reduce the risk of shortages later because we will not be in the shops panic buying if the supply chains are disrupted. Supermarkets can only stockpile so much as space is very limited, so effectively, those of us with full cupboards are saving warehouse space. It's far from adding to the problem.
Now if everyone goes shopping all at once the last week of October.....now that would be a problem!

Can we import stuff from China and the US on October 31st if it's No Deal ? Presumably there's no tariffs set for any imports and US /China will want a rate that benefits them more than the EU negotiated rate? No hard border in Ireland means no WTO rules right? I understand that you have to be voted into the WTO and we aren't going to get voted in because of political issues like the Falklands.

How are they exacerbating the problem by stockpiling? The shops will have planned for this and will be able to meet the higher demand whilst there are currently no restrictions or supply problems. So if there is a 10% increase in baked bean sales, the shops can order and buy more from their supplier without a problem. They can replace those six extra cans easily and have the shelf filled again quickly, thats the whole point of stock control. Shops have had months of notice, just as they do at Xmas.

If there are supply problems and restrictions after Brexit happens, then people who are stockpiling at that point will cause problems, because they will be taking a larger percentage than normal of a limited supply. Then shops won't so easily be able to replace what is being bought.

Every person who is stockpiling now is a person who won't be putting pressure on the supply chain, supermarkets and limited supplies in the event of problems immediately after Brexit happens.

Even two days of bad weather and late deliveries to supermarkets leads to panic buying and scrums in the supermarket.

I'm getting my 'panic buying' out of the way now whilst shops can accommodate it easily, leaving the supermarkets immediately post-Brexit with one less harried and panicked shopper.

I'm not stockpiling as such but forward purchasing as I do every winter, just bringing it forward a little. Last year, we were cut off for a week when the Beast from the East turned up and although it was possible to hike a couple of miles through the snow to the Coop in the village, it was stripped bare and there were no deliveries.

If we crash out and it's all chaotic with deliveries to shops etc and bad-tempered people getting angry, I want to be able to hole up at home, just as in the snow, and know that I don't HAVE to go out. I'll be able to pass a supermarket and decide whether I want to pop in and see if they have bananas or whatever, but I don't want to have to do it.

Plus I take very specific medications for my epilepsy and have been quietly building up a buffer of those over the last year or so. Will also stock up on OTC meds etc.

What I am worried about is fuel. My very elderly inlaws are a 25 minute drive away and we need to be able to visit most days. Our neighbours are brilliant and have said that they'll do their best to make sure we can always get there, which is lovely of them, but DH is also overhauling his bike...

Forward purchasing now will not cause shortages because we still have a delivery system. And getting a small supply in hand may well save a lot of stress come the beginning of November.