Isn’t this why we prep?

[Wrenna]

I was reading some articles about panic buying and how some shelves are clear of loo roll, pain relieves, tissues, etc. and how people can’t find them and blame the ‘preppers’.

But it’s not the preppers, is it, that’s causing these issues, it’s the panic buyers, the people that Haven’t prepped, surely? Sure, last week I topped up my supplies, but I already had a Lot of items on hand, that I get at sales, through the year, exactly for this type of situation. I just don’t understand the distain for ‘preppers’ by some people that think we are the problem! Surely this is why we prep, isn’t it?!

Pretty much. I may pick up bits if I'm out and about to top up my stash but there Is no panic about it.

Yep. Some people on here are getting the difference between panicking and prepping.
But not many.
Make sure you are using this time to chill out and de stress. And not to beat yourself if you've not got some item you think it would be good to have. You don't need it that badly.

I havnt panic bought. I did get some extra calpol and paracetamol tho and soup incase I get it and cant eat much. I always have stuff in. I was brought up that way and used to live in the country where you cant just pop to the supermarket. Its sensible and saves money. I understand that not everyone has a pantry, but I cant believe from talking to friends that they dont even have a spare toothpaste or tin or tin or two. I understand there are people who cant afford to. But part of my reason I stock up Is I am a single parent and I dint have a regular income. My pantry has been added to for years. Sometimes it's very very low but when I do get a bit of regular work it's amazing how the odd extra tin or packet of rice builds up and can be spun together to make a nutritious meal.

Stock's better than money, as my wise old grandma used to say. I'm not a proper prepper, there's no strategy to it and I have no plan for real emergencies like no power, but I have well-stocked cupboards and a full freezer. I think we could do two weeks without really noticing the difference. It might get a bit lentilly after that, but we'd still be fed.

It was fairly apparent in January this was going to be a problem and I prepped appropriately. I wanted to avoid large crowded supermarkets, and irrational panic buying - exactly what’s happened.

Some people still think if you have more than two cans of soup in, you must be a doomsday prepper though. My Facebook timeline is still full of people who think it’s a cough and if it goes wrong the government will somehow magically feed them. Good luck with that

@TheFluffiestCat "a bit lentilly "

Yeah we often get a bit lentilly round our way. Good old lentil curry/soup for lunch everyday the week before payday and porridge which I actually really dont mind. Gets boring tho. But we are lucky to have it when some have nothing. X

Agree. Prepping is just being generally prepared for outages, not panic driven shelf stripping. (As an aside, I was interested to see, when I went to my local Coop for milk, that it was 100% business as usual and there was plenty of ibuprofen, paracetamol, antibacterial wipes and spray, loo roll, kitchen roll).

I'm like you koala. I did wonder if I should actually have sone kind of plan or system for future shopping, but what I have done up to now works for us.
I wouldnt dream of not having basic medicine, soap and porridge etc I think it would give me anxiety. But I do have an unpredictable income. X

Yanbu
I bought my stash when there were no supply problems so currently only buying normal food shop like fresh fruit and veg rather than loo roll

Same here, I dont have racks and racks of food squirrelled away around the house but I do have a full pantry and freezer, and while I would miss being able to just nip out and buy what I fancy to eat that day, we could get by for a month or so on what we have.

Asda this morning was awful, people filling trolleys to the brim, ALL hand soap, sanitiser, loo roll, anti bac cleaning stuff was gone. Even sterilising stuff for baby bottles was stripped bare.

It does make me doubly aware of prepping for Brexit and I'll make sure my pantry and freezer are well filled before January 2021.

God can you imagine having a new born and not being able to get sterilising stuff because people are panic buying. You would have to buy the steamers... provided you had money or boil. I feel so sorry for the poor and vulnerable that will suffer more due to the panic buying. It's all very unnerving

Like another pp I didn’t think I was a prepper but some of the things I’ve read make me think I am a bit. A woman on my twitter timeline raging about the fact she couldn’t get calpol at the shop and her child had a temperature. I can’t imagine ever allowing myself to get to a calpol-zero situation. Same with toilet roll, when I repurchase is when the cupboard drops below 6 rolls.

We have always had a good store of food. I'm also of the opinion that sell by dates are a guide only. This is true especially if dried foods , and tins.
We are no way perfect when it comes to it as found some pasta with date of 2016 but we are eating it and not dead !

Exactly like us @MamaFlintstone I have one 16 roll pack of loo roll in the cupboard under the stairs with cleaning stuff and 1 on the go. When the 1 on the go is done I crack open the stashed one and replace that. So there's always a 16 roll pack set aside.

I do the same for shampoo, toothpaste etc. So not dozens of anything just a spare. I hate the idea of running out out of something and not being able to replace or having to drag myself out for an emergency buy if I'm tired/sick/busy etc so I always have a spare.

When DD was a baby we bought Milton tablets in massive boxes, she's 5 now and we still have loads of them left over so I use them in the summer to keep the paddling pool water clear, or to occasionally sterilise some grubby plastic toys.

I'm going to keep an ear out and if anyone I know with a baby says they are struggling to get them I'll offer some of mine.

I prepped/stashed for Brexit and haven't used anything except stuff that was going out of date, which I then replaced. So thankfully will be OK for a good while if necessary.

I've been an unconscious prepper for years. I find it easier to buy in bulk from Costco a few times a year rather than buying staples from the supermarket every week.

I popped into Tesco's yesterday for bread and a few veggies. It was a relief I could walk past empty shelves knowing that I bought my essentials 2-6 weeks ago.

One chap was really ranting about no hand sanitizer. It's a known fact it's been selling quickly since early Feb so he's had time like everyone else - it's going to dawn on a lot they should have prepared.

We got some drinks yesterday but that was just for last night.

I'm staying away from it all this week. Will be buying fresh on Friday providing it's there, if not I'll crack out the frozen fruit and veg.

This is exactly why we prep. I was one less in Tesco buying toilet paper and cleaning stuff. More available for them, less stress for me.

Exactly - I have an internet shop coming today but it’s “normal” stuff like meat, fruit and veg, milk etc. I already have three packs of loo roll, paracetamol, spare soap which I have in the cupboard as a matter of course! I can’t understand people who have said things like “I couldn’t get paracetamol and I’ve got a headache” - you were down to two tablets in the whole house and that’s everyone else’s fault? You have one toilet roll left?

I agree @Michaelbaubles . Period pain - while absolutely horrible- is generally a predictable thing. Why you wouldn't have stuff that works for you in is weird. I'd prioritise that over quite a lot of stuff if money was tight.

I appreciate some people are on a low income but I stock precisely because it costs less! All those things are cheap at places like Home Bargains and it’s a matter of course for me to pop a packet of paracetamol at 19p or 4 soaps for £1 in my basket every time I go. They will definitely get used so why not? It’s crazy that people are so reliant on being able to “pop out” for stuff and that having a normal back up stash is seen as prepping.

My first one