Russia and Ukraine, US preppers in high doh, potential impacts here?

[BiddyPop]

A number of US and Canadian based preppers seem to be getting even more anxious about the potential for DOOOOOOMMMMMM than usual - partly transport and logistics issues, but also theories about "government interference" and impending potential conflict situations.

Here, I am seeing

• Bird flu outbreaks happening (no longer just warnings and odd tiny spots)

-Potential that Russia will invade Ukraine thus shutting off gas supplies to Europe causing even more energy price increases/potentially shortage of supply

• Continuing logistics issues caused by the combination of Covid and Brexit
• Relatively high inflation on food and many other items

But, on the less pessimistic side:

• the weather is not as bad as many years,
• there is food on the shelves in shops, (gaps yes, but plenty of food)
• lots of countries are trying to talk Russia down,
• Covid is less of an issue as Omicron is making people so much less sick in general, even if it is making more people mildly sick
• and China is being very quiet at the moment.

So I'm trying to decide if I should be optimistic or pessimistic (currently at a point of starting to use up some of my back up supplies and run down stores again, but wondering if I should just be turning them over and replacing what I use rather than depleting them).

And if I should be looking at things like water purification systems or other areas of prepping (am ok for alternative cooking, reasonable alternative heating, some backup power and some water storage etc).

Sirens wise alot have been dismantled now.

Rsther than sirens, the emergency broadcast system would send messages to phones and through tvs and radios like happened in hawaii

We have sirens used still where we live. The get tested every Saturday at midday. They go off for volunteer fire brigade a lot, car accidents locally, avalanche warnings and they have nuclear option ( but I wouldn’t really now what that alarm is)

I’ve just run down all of our brexit and covid preps due to lack of space. Wishing I hadn’t now. Any tips on meals that need minimal prep in the case of power outages.

Were quite avid food and supplies preppers but DH has just asked about grab bags and getting under the stairs ready in case needed!

Whilst I think the stairs are a long shot grab bags seem like a good idea

@Rainbowsandstorms

I’ve just run down all of our brexit and covid preps due to lack of space. Wishing I hadn’t now. Any tips on meals that need minimal prep in the case of power outages.

I’m sure that question has come up on other threads though right now I can’t remember which ones, or any of the great suggestions!

In a power cut you want to avoid opening fridge and freezer, so it might be worth considering whether you routinely store things in the fridge that don’t need to be there (hard cheese, eggs, some fruits and veg).

@elephantmarchingin

Were quite avid food and supplies preppers but DH has just asked about grab bags and getting under the stairs ready in case needed!

Whilst I think the stairs are a long shot grab bags seem like a good idea

If nukes are dropped even under the stairs is not safe. If anyone has seen the film "Threads" it really is not pleasant and actually I personally would rather not survive than see my family die of radiation sickness or the aftermath of fallout and nuclear winter. By the time the warnings had been issued it would be unlikely that you would get the opportunity to grab your bags and leave, the roads would be chaos, if in fact your vehicle actually worked. Yes, I do prep and have done so for a few years, however I am also a realist. I can prep for some situations, however I do not feel that nuclear war is one of them.

@Rainbowsandstorms

If you have means of boiling water: cous cous.

Otherwise we keep tinned meat and fish, bread, some fruit out of the fridge except in high summer.

Look at a meal you like and see if you can make it out of tins/ packets

For ex: chilli. Tin of mince and onions, tin of kidney beans, spices, rice

I have alot of tinned veg, tinned meat, tinned fruit. I also have loads of cous cous (preppers dream. High in calories, but takes up very little space compared to pasta)
Also make sure to think about adding flavour. I have dried mix veg that would add flavour with a handful

@Diversion - my late mother always said that if there were ever nuclear war, she's try and drive towards it so we all went quickly. Grim but true.

I find it reassuring that people have prepped so there will be some houses worth raising after the supermarkets have been looted.

Might as well have something to do before the radiation poisoning truly kicks in

I live in the Channel Islands.

No bomb will hit us. Chance of a bomb landing near enough to wipe us out is slim

So we either try and survive or wait for radiation poisoning to get us or the power plant over the water in France to get us.

I doubt very much it would get to nuclear war

Sideorderofchips do you have any allotment?

What I like in disaster shows like The Walking Dead is that someone clearly still cuts the grass. That’s nice.

Assume, pickles, then plan and prepare.

Allotments have a decade or so waiting list here

We have a 'community garden' so aren't eligible for an allotment. The CG however is tiny and has about 100 members so there's little point getting involved if produce is what you're after at the end of it. I do dip my head in and do some watering and have a chat but my own little garden will have to do for growing.

I need to find the best way to do so, every year I've had one of those pvc little greenhouses and then planted everything in tubs which works well but last year all my tomatoes got blight and I lost the lot. I don't know how to prevent that this year and if I'm better using built up raise beds or something else? Will nets stop the caterpillars eating any greens? Is there certain veg that are better to grow for sustainable family consumption etc etc.

'bird flu outbreaks'...?

I think Mumsnet is going to have to take a good look at these 'prepping' threads as they are getting increasingly unhinged.

When I see the courage and dignity of the people of Ukraine who are actually in the thick of it all and fighting compared to the ridiculous tone of some of the discussions on here I despair.

@wingscrow

'bird flu outbreaks'...?

I think Mumsnet is going to have to take a good look at these 'prepping' threads as they are getting increasingly unhinged.

When I see the courage and dignity of the people of Ukraine who are actually in the thick of it all and fighting compared to the ridiculous tone of some of the discussions on here I despair.

Why are you on the board if it brings you to despair?

@TonyBravo
I grow mustard greens and rocket and the caterpillars don't like to eat those . I also have nasturtiums as a distraction next to them. I eat the nasturtium flowers as well.

@wingscrow
If you don't want to be prepared then don't be.
If these discussions make you despair then don't read them.

@wingscrow when I started this thread, over a month ago, there were some bigger outbreaks of bird flu hitting the media, which had the potential for a mass cull of farmed birds including all chickens in the uk and Ireland. Strangely, in the short term, that would have quite a large impact on food supplies as pretty much all the chicken, eggs, turkey, duck and other fowl on sale in the uk would be wiped off the shelves.

As it happens, this was just 1 of a number of potential problems that I was seeing at that time and wondering if I was being overly pessimistic or if the positives were in fact the things to focus on.

Which is all part of prepping. Looking at potential problems, considering how to overcome them and putting sensible plans in place.

Not panic buying when the potential problem actually happens, just putting the plans into action and making use of the supplies already bought. Quietly at home.

So the things in the shops are for those who are in a panic, running around to get cash out and fill petrol tanks and buy toilet roll etc.

As it happens, they got the bigger outbreaks of bird flu back under control. But there is a general problem with small outbreaks of bird flu which has been going on for over a year now and it's being passed around through the loo of wild birds - that's why owners of domestic fowl (chickens, turkeys, ducks etc) have rules to keep them in covered enclosures and make sure they don't come in contact with poo from wild birds.

And yes, a month after this thread was started, only 1 of those potential issues is currently active.

@wingscrow

'bird flu outbreaks'...?

I think Mumsnet is going to have to take a good look at these 'prepping' threads as they are getting increasingly unhinged.

When I see the courage and dignity of the people of Ukraine who are actually in the thick of it all and fighting compared to the ridiculous tone of some of the discussions on here I despair.

What happened with the lack of hand sanitizer or toilet paper shortages ? If everyone had a month's supply, then they're would likely been minimal shortages, but cause people panicked rather than planned, it lead to shortsges, there for in conclusion why is prepping not good in your perspectives ?

Just to give you all the heads up - tractor diesel has gone up by 10p per litre in the last week which will have the knock on effect of increased food prices. Fertiliser costs have also gone through the roof so production costs of grass, cereals, animal feed etc will significantly increase. This added to the fact that supplies from Ukraine (wheat etc) will be severely curtailed means we are going to see a huge hike in food prices in the next few months 🙁

Which Are The Top Export Products Of Russia?
Rank Product Value (in millions of USD), 2012
1 Crude petroleum 183,748
2 Refined petroleum 70,646
3 Natural gas 42,892
4 Coal 14,074
5 Semi-Finished Iron 6,997
6 Aluminium 6,638
7 Wheat 6,211
8 Gold 5,845
9 Diamonds 4,677
10 Mixed Mineral or Chemical Fertilizers 4,255
11 Nickel 4,186
12 Nitrogenous Fertilizers 3,850
13 Potassic Fertilizers 3,643
14 Sawn Wood 3,448
15 Hot-Rolled Iron 3,273
16 Copper wire 3,011
17 Synthetic rubber 2,919
18 Iron ore 2,813
19 Radioactive Chemicals 2,583
20 Refined Copper 2,528

www.worldatlas.com/articles/which-are-the-top-export-products-of-russia.html#:~:text=Top%20Export%20Products%20Of%20Russia%201%20Crude%20petroleum.,in%20exports.%203%20Aluminum.%20...%204%20Gold.%20

Thank you to @MarshmallowSwede and @Disneysaurus - really useful list for ideas. We've had a few power cuts recently (planned, due to work nearby) and it does make you realise just how dependent we are on a reliable power supply!

The other thing I was thinking of was getting a couple of cheap PAYG/ cheap SIM phones, just in case the family gets separated for any reason and we have spares - maybe this smartphone and a very cheap SIM like this - wouldn't cost much to keep it topped up and it would give me peace of mind as a 'just in case'. Also on the lookout for candles, the shops were out of plain ones today. Should the power grid fail then at least the house will smell nice as I burn the lily of the valley tealights everywhere