Emergency Food Supply

[RamblingMad]

so you are not a candidate to hike the Pacific Crest Trail?

Seriously? It's not economical to eat those meals for a thru hike, nor do I know anyone that would want to.

 

[chickapin parterre]

Seriously? It's not economical to eat those meals for a thru hike, nor do I know anyone that would want to.

Well....that is all we had in the 70s and did my PCT july of 1981 in Oregon. I went two ramen noodle meals, then one Mountain house, and oatmeal every morning. The only food problem I had no pudding or peanut butter, pudding because I did not hear of Instant. My Captain Orr trips were simple and misguided by my father on the instant pudding. Peanut butter, well that is heavy stuff.

 

[chickapin parterre]

I completed a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2017. Ate lots and lots of stuff I'd never eat at home. It was several months out of my life that I'll never forget.

How were you inspired for the hike...been on any others?

 

[Minnesota!]

We don't have any shortages here...if something is out, there is a reasonable replacement. That being said, I have been buying extra nonperishable stuff...not for us, but because my mom lives in the middle of nowhere and husband has an aunt that is single, etc. So, I want enough to be Able to help them when the time comes.

 

[kdonnel]

I can’t even fathom 3 months of food. I wouldn’t know how to begin to plan that.

If your interested here are some resources that explain the what and how.

https://thesurvivalmom.com/beyond-the-lds-food-storage-calculator/
https://thesurvivalmom.com/lds-preparedness-manual/

 

[tvguy]

I can’t even fathom 3 months of food. I wouldn’t know how to begin to plan that.

My FIL was retired Air Force and he and his wife would make one trip every three months to the commissary since it was a 90 minute drive away. He had a pickup and Lord knows how many ice chests to bring the food home. They had a huge freezer and a huge pantry for canned goods. Only thing they bought locally was milk. That would last them 3 months. Did that for 32 years from the time he retired and moved into his retirement home, until he passed away. He had passed away by the time Hurricane Rita hit, ruining everything in the freezer. The canned goods, of course, were fine,

 

[TLSnell1981]

I am wondering why the OP is doing fear mongering regarding the food supply. People need to be rational and think clearly and calmly during this time. It is not the time to be getting everyone anxious. I like the more supportive threads helping each other through this time.

Fear mongering? Some always plan ahead for emergency situations ...no matter what they are. It actually relieves anxiety when you are prepared.

 

[focusondisney]

If your interested here are some resources that explain the what and how.

https://thesurvivalmom.com/beyond-the-lds-food-storage-calculator/
https://thesurvivalmom.com/lds-preparedness-manual/

Thanks but it was more rhetorical. My 87 year old mother is pretty much a hoarder. I can’t spend very much time at her house & thinking about the things, including canned & dry goods she kept in the basement is upsetting. I have purchased way more than a normal weeks groceries for the last 3 weeks & have been able to get several packs of soaps, paper towels & TP. I am happy I have those supplies, but I hope we won’t need to overstock for a long time. I am in my 60s & had started to clear stuff out of our house just before all this started. I will feel much better if I can keep doing that & not worry about my kids having to clear years of stuff out after we’re gone.

 

[bcla]

....but how was the top Ramen noodles??

You need to cook that, although I've heard of some people who just choke them down dry. Those really aren't so great for backpacking where one needs to stash stuff in a bear canister. My only freeze-dried meal was for my first day so I didn't need to store it in the canister.

 

[TippyThomas]

How were you inspired for the hike...been on any others?

Wanted to complete the thru hike since I was a teen. Life finally gave me the chance I needed to do it so I went for it. It was an amazing experience. No other thru hikes yet but I'll never say never to the possibility.

 

[Lilsia]

Our stores occasionally run out of a certain item, but for the most part, the shelves are full. People are not hoarding food and are shopping normally. Except for toilet paper.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

If this keeps happening it could certainly cause a supply issue.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/08/business/meat-plant-closures-coronavirus/index.html
I’m not Saying go out for a 3 month supply either. You can’t possibly do that in one shopping trip anyway. That takes time to accumulate. And with the half bare shelves already I can’t imagine how’d you get that done anytime soon.

 

[TLSnell1981]

Thanks but it was more rhetorical. My 87 year old mother is pretty much a hoarder. I can’t spend very much time at her house & thinking about the things, including canned & dry goods she kept in the basement is upsetting. I have purchased way more than a normal weeks groceries for the last 3 weeks & have been able to get several packs of soaps, paper towels & TP. I am happy I have those supplies, but I hope we won’t need to overstock for a long time. I am in my 60s & had started to clear stuff out of our house just before all this started. I will feel much better if I can keep doing that & not worry about my kids having to clear years of stuff out after we’re gone.

You mother was born during the Depression. I'm sure that affected her habits. Both of my grandmothers were young but had strong memories of those difficult times. They had different experiences but neither was pleasant. They planned, saved and were very frugal their entire lives. They both ALWAYS made sure there was plenty to eat. It made an impression on me.

 

[terri01p]

I do good to get a weeks worth of groceries in a cart , I can only imagine a couple of months worth. Yikes !

 

[mousefan73]

since this started we have about a 2- 3 week supply of food. Mainly as 1. we choose to get out as least as possible. 2. in case we are forced to stay home if we get sick.

If we reach a point where we NEED to have a 3 months supply, then there are other, bigger issue too worry about and I will not worry about that for mental health..

My .02 is that we are all over fed and simply have too many choices in food consumption. We are all basically spoiled in the choices and amount of food we have to choose for. and can simply get by handing over a credit card vs. having to procure oneself.

Most people wouldnt even be able to figure out what they NEED vs what they WANT when it comes to emergency nuitrition and surviving.

I can envision a fight at a walmart over that last packet of Oreos or hazelnut coffeemate while the bean/rice aisle is full.

 

[tvguy]

You mother was born during the Depression. I'm sure that affected her habits. Both of my grandmothers were young but had strong memories of those difficult times. They had different experiences but neither was pleasant. They planned, saved and were very frugal their entire lives. They both ALWAYS made sure there was plenty to eat. It made an impression on me.

My mom lived as a kid on a farm with her 4 siblings. Money and food were tight, my Grandmother had a vegetable garden and canned those veggies for winter (and storage in the root cellar)
My mom grew up in the depression.
Fast forward to her adult life. I started school in 1962 at the peak of the Bay of Pigs/Cold war. We lived with 4 Air Force bases and 3 Army Depots in the area. We likely would have been the first target. We had a month's worth of food and water at home, and a week's worth of food and water in the trunks of both cars.
Oh, and my dad worked in a cannery. We always had canned items on the shelf. He passed away decades ago, mom passed away 7 years ago. But I suspect she wouldn't have needed any trips to the grocery store yet if she were still alive.

 

[Christine]

I can’t even fathom 3 months of food. I wouldn’t know how to begin to plan that. I usually shop weekly with a quick stop for milk, bread or a forgotten item once or twice a week. I have been going once a week since mid March and have pretty much stocked up on meats, pastas & canned items. I work 2 days a week, 12 hour shifts. On those days DH gets take out or has a frozen entree for dinner. Before all this we would also get take out once a week & go out for dinner once. So I normally only cook 3, maybe 4 times a week at most. We have only gotten take out 3 times since this started, so I have been cooking more. I am on vacation this week (cancelled WDW trip ) For the first time in my life I have planned out meals for the week & written them on the calendar. I won’t make a dent in what I have in the freezer. I am not planning on any shopping for at least another 2 weeks.

I normally do all my shopping at Wegmans. When things started getting intense here, there was 1 day of a huge run on them all over. Aisles of shelves were totally empty. The other local chain never got that bad. Wegmans still seems to be having supply issues with some items. The meats have not recovered yet. At least at the store I shop at. Meat selection is still pretty limited. They had their brand paper towels 2 weeks ago, none this week. The last 2 weeks they have had some of their brand TP. Their produce is great, but pasta, sauces & canned goods are maybe half what they normally would be. No rice at all. Frozen foods we’re full this week. The other local chain is pretty much fully stocked with everything except for paper products & cleaning supplies. The contrast in their meat supplies & Wegmans has been especially noticeable. If you had gone only into that Wegmans during the last month, you would have been concerned about the food supply chain too.

Same experience for me at my Wegman's. I can't tell if they are having supply issues or it's just that they are SO much busier (always) over other grocery chains. But still, they should know their customer base and be able to keep up, but they can't.

 

[AnnaS]

I did not read all the pages - having said that, when I see shelves not stocked might be a shortage of employees - mostly due to COVID19/call outs for a few reasons, sick, afraid of getting sick, can't get to work, the usual call-outs - besides the usual hoarding, delivery problems, etc. So many times there is product/pallets of food in the back but no enough employees/time to pack it out.

Food delivery - they still have the same number of employees dedicated to home deliveries. Can't keep up with the demand. Our local supermarkets have been advertising they are hiring (because of COVID19) - not sure if they are filling these positions. (Not only did I work in one, but have a ton of friends I talk to still working). (Of course, there is still the shortage of cleaning products and TP).

 

[tasha99]

We always have several months of food because I often shop at restaurant supply stores. #10 cans and whole pieces of meat (I don't tend to buy some brisket, I buy a whole brisket etc). We got a little concerned about how most of our food was in the freezer, putting us at risk if there was a power outage, so I recently bought some rice and beans. There's none on the shelves in grocery stores where I am, but first thing in the morning at the restaurant supply store, they have 25 and 50 pound bags. It's where we found flour as well. I don't think it's crazy to have a lot of food, but it's something we built up gradually over time, and not for survival reasons, but because you get everything cheap when you buy bulk.

 

[tvguy]

I did not read all the pages - having said that, when I see shelves not stocked might be a shortage of employees - mostly due to COVID19/call outs for a few reasons, sick, afraid of getting sick, can't get to work, the usual call-outs - besides the usual hoarding, delivery problems, etc. So many times there is product/pallets of food in the back but no enough employees/time to pack it out.

Food delivery - they still have the same number of employees dedicated to home deliveries. Can't keep up with the demand. Our local supermarkets have been advertising they are hiring (because of COVID19) - not sure if they are filling these positions. (Not only did I work in one, but have a ton of friends I talk to still working). (Of course, there is still the shortage of cleaning products and TP).

At least at our chain store, it's lack of product. We went yesterday at 6 am when they opened. Lots of workers stocking what they had. The items just aren't coming in. They were lucky yesterday, they got 4 cases of TP. They ordered 100 cases.
Until a month ago my store had one full time person doing the delivery shopped. They just hired 15 additional people to meet demand.
But they say, they are lucky if half the items people want are in stock. Those ordering online seem to be trying to snag TP and cleaning supplies and things that are out of stock.
And we have a dear friend who doesn't follow the news closely and tried ordering Easter dinner times on Saturday from Safeway. She canceled the order because the earliest delivery date was Friday of THIS week.