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Brexit

Do we genuinely need to stockpile?

218 replies

thunderthighsohwoe · 28/08/2019 13:18

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.

OP posts:
augustagain · 29/08/2019 13:04

Just thought contraception - the Pill and emergency contraception maybe?

Dontgiveamonkeys1350 · 29/08/2019 13:13

@astralplaning you realise that people spent years sorting that out so it didn’t happen ?????

Google it.

astralplaning · 29/08/2019 13:15

you realise that people spent years sorting that out so it didn’t happen ?????

So there was no need to panic and I didn't Smile

Govt have had 3 years to plan this Brexit, so I am sure it will be fine.

berlinbabylon · 29/08/2019 13:19

Govt have had 3 years to plan this Brexit, so I am sure it will be fine

I snorted when I saw this. I presume it was meant ironically?

Socksontheradiator · 29/08/2019 13:32

No need to worry then astral Smile
Bet you just happen to have a couple of bags of rice and pasta though, and stuff in your freezer Flowers

astralplaning · 29/08/2019 13:35

I need to get onto that!

astralplaning · 29/08/2019 13:36

I snorted when I saw this

With laughter, I hope Wink

Pinkblueberry · 29/08/2019 13:46

I sometimes wonder at how much calpol people get through to be ‘stock piling’ it Confused DS is 14 months old and we’re only on our second bottle.

bellinisurge · 29/08/2019 13:49

@Pinkblueberry , I just buy a bottle when I see it and have the pennies. I had a load and relied on it for a few months. My stock is running low and my "I don't like medicine" dd who is troubled with period pains has it in extremis. And despite all that , we seem to go through it.

Graphista · 29/08/2019 13:55

Oh boy! Op have you not read any of the many threads on brexit prepping?

It's clear some respondents haven't.

From my own faq list developed from those:

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

no you'd be confusing stockpiling with panic buying. People buying and storing a little extra than they'd normally buy now means this frees up warehouse space for supermarkets and allows them to adjust their buying rates appropriately.

"No. We do farm a lot in this country"

"Govt have had 3 years to plan this Brexit, so I am sure it will be fine."

We are not as a country self sufficient. The govt has failed to organised increased production either by farmers or manufacturers and haven't even helped supermarkets arrange extra warehousing. At this point they are however starting to stockpile themselves and are refreshing training for police and armed forces in case of unrest. - this was back in February/March and they were only just STARTING to put some VERY MINIMAL planning in place.

"It will hit prices not availability."

Written now - not everyone can afford price rises! We've already got many families having to use food banks and parents skipping meals so their children can eat.

"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 quality of products from America and China are debatable! Plus the further away something comes from the more it costs. Certainly fresh goods can't reliably come from so far away. European sourced products could well not be getting through at all if we crash out! We won't have any trade agreements in place for any of these suppliers anyway for starters. There's been meetings and discussions going on but it can take several years for them to be done. And it's not just quality it's safety! China has some very dubious practices which have eg resulted in poisonous infant formula. - see the 2008 milk scandal.

A lot of people also seem unaware that a considerable amount of "non European" goods reach us via eu distribution centres. Eg South African and South American wines transported in vats to bottling plants in Eu and THEN distributed to uk.

"We are a fat nation so we don't need to stock pile." Pretty sure you know better joystir! Sarcasm? Ah yes it was - good stuff. But still for the benefit of those who DID think that a reasonable argument;

8 well we all need to lose weight anyway we'll just diet

You still need nutrition for basic bodily functions & health. Obesity is more complex than simply "eat less", also children, the elderly and sick need calories and nutrition to grow and to stay healthy. And not everyone's fat! My dd is over 6' and barely more than a size 8 due to her disability she has a high metabolism. She needs the calories AND she needs to consume a certain amount of fat to protect her joints. Diabetics need a stable diet to manage their condition as do people with a variety of other conditions, some people need to take medication with certain types of foods, there's those with allergies to consider etc

Also hungry people get pissed off! Before they get to a point where they're too weak to fight they'll get angry! That's what will likely lead to the civil unrest. That and people fearful for loved ones who are diabetics etc.

That last paragraph even more likely given events of last 24 hours!

"Does anyone know the impact to things like winter fuel?" I'm worried about energy side of things too as we import a lot, not got a satisfactory answer from anyone yet!

"I don't think we do. It's Y2K all over again."

4 there was all this over the Millenium bug too and it was all hype

No - IT and telecoms people worked for YEARS in advance to prevent that issue from happening.

"Just thought contraception - the Pill and emergency contraception maybe?" I think there's a distinct possibility of a small "baby boom" 9-12 months after brexit.

Bingo card filling up quickly!!

Socksontheradiator · 29/08/2019 15:26

@Pinkblueberry re calpol, one of mine was unable to regulate her temperature properly, and twice ended up in hospital with febrile convulsions. Can happen very fast. We had to give calpol and junior ibuprofen alternately every two hours if she had a raised temp. My others got through bottles at about the same rate as yours.
You stockpile for your family and their needs.

Socksontheradiator · 29/08/2019 15:28

I love your FAQs, Graphista

astralplaning · 29/08/2019 15:50

Bidding on a perfume on Ebay - damn well going to smell good while Brexit is happening Wink

CrunchyCarrot · 29/08/2019 18:36

well we all need to lose weight anyway we'll just diet

Seriously??? I am underweight and am trying very hard to gain (and it's every bit as hard as losing I can assure you). I do not need to add food shortages to my problems, so am am taking precautions by putting some food by.

WrongKindOfFace · 29/08/2019 18:42

I think they can have half a paracetamol tablet from age six - miles cheaper and easier to store than calpol.

NoWordForFluffy · 29/08/2019 18:43

We get chewable Calpol for ours. Really dear though!

prettybird · 29/08/2019 19:29

@saucery - my daily contact lenses are made in Ireland so I'm going to order extra so that I have enough for 6 months Smile

Fortunately my prescription is very stable so that there is no concern that it will change.

Saucery · 29/08/2019 20:51

Mine is too, @prettybird, hasn’t changed for ages and been checked recently. Glad it’s not just me who is thinking ahead on the contact lense front.

I’m building a food buffer too btw. It’s not all about my vanity Grin . I didn’t until a few weeks ago. Comments from someone trustworthy I know in a job that means they know how ridiculously unprepared made me take it a bit more seriously. They weren’t alarmist at all, just shared that there is a woeful lack of preparation being done.
I always have water in because our utilities company are generally shit and a main pipe bursts with tedious regularity anyway.

MarshmallowManiac · 29/08/2019 21:08

Just to let anyone know who may be interested I made Shepherd's Pie with tinned vegetables (carrots, peas, and mushrooms), just to see was it alright and everyone in the household seemed to enjoy it, only I wasn't too mad about the tinned mushrooms!

S1naidSucks · 29/08/2019 22:16

MarshmallowManiac Frozen mushrooms are like something that the devil has sneezed on your food. 🤢 I wonder what dried mushrooms would be like?

Rufusthebewilderedreindeer · 29/08/2019 22:27

sucks

They would be yum like porcini mushrooms Grin very strong though

MarshmallowManiac · 29/08/2019 22:34

Sucks I might just try dried thanks, love Porcini Rufus must be MUCH better than tinned Grin

SansaSnark · 29/08/2019 22:46

Reasons to stockpile that have not yet been mentioned on this thread:

-There will be a log-jam of lorries at ports. Pretty much everyone has accepted this will happen. The government has said they will prioritise water purification chemicals and medicines before food. Things will be slower coming into (and leaving) the country.

-The log jam of lorries will mean that lorries won't end up where they are expected to, so there could be a knock on effect for a while.

-A lot of non-EU imports come through European ports (especially Rotterdam) first, so we can't be sure all of this will get into the country smoothly either. If there are delays at ports, this will also affect non-EU imports even if they have come directly to the UK.

-We could fly stuff in, but this is expensive and more likely to be reserved for stuff like medicines rather than food.

-UK farmers and other food producers rely on the EU to keep going. They are subsidised by the EU, many workers (skilled and unskilled) come from the EU, they import things from the EU, they export things to the EU which helps keep them in business. No-deal brexit won't mean business as usual at UK based farms.

-Supermarket bosses have said they expect empty shelves short term- in general they probably know what they are talking about!

-Think about what happens when it snows and people panic buy (adding a few extra things to your shop months in advance is not panic buying). If people panic on November 1st, it will take longer to refill the shelves than usual.

People who are stockpiling don't think everything will disappear overnight on November 1st. They also don't think that there will be extreme food shortages long term. I think most people think there will be a short period where shelves are pretty empty, followed by a longer period where there are perhaps random shortages of some things which are hard to anticipate. In the longer term, prices will go up, some things will perhaps be hard to get hold of, but stocks of most staples will largely be "normal".

It's also worth thinking about where you live:

-In some places, there might be lots of people who don't have well stocked cupboards anyway, for whom a few days of not much food in the supermarkets and high prices might mean they can't get any food at all. Think about how these people might behave and if it would be easy for you to get to/from the shops?

-If there are limited food supplies, they may not be spread around the country evenly. If you are rural or at an extreme of the country, I think there's a possibility you may end up getting less than your share of deliveries. I think there may be some prioritization of cities to try to avoid short term rioting/unrest.

-If you rely on one Supermarket/shop there may be irregularities in supply that mean your supermarket/shop is particularly affected. If you live somewhere with lots of supermarkets, you may be able to walk around them all to find the one that has what you want.

-If you live near a major port, it may be harder than usual to get around due to queuing lorries. If there are big queues at Dover, lorries will be diverted to other ports to spread the queues around the country.

Rufusthebewilderedreindeer · 29/08/2019 22:48

marshmallow

If you want to see a grown man cry serve dh tinned mushrooms with his full English

He does cry at the emotional bits in the simpsons though so it doesnt take much

peachgreen · 29/08/2019 23:00

I'm not panicking but I am going to clear out my larder and freezer of anything non-essential (will use it, obviously!) and refill with some of the things I think it might be more difficult to get (mostly perishables so going to get lots of frozen fruit and veg) and some long-lasting basics - pasta, rice, pesto, a few tins etc etc. And some UHT milk and extra formula for DD who can't have dairy. It's a good opportunity to do some sensible forward planning that really everyone should have in place where possible. I can't afford to spend loads at once so am just planning on an extra £20 or so on each weekly shop (and realise I'm lucky to be able to do so).

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