I mostly bought what I needed in January an early February, as I am always waiting for catastrophe ;) My local grocer got hit hard last week. No eggs or milk then, no bread, no IP. Now we have eggs and meat but no frozen veggies.
Find a Grocery Outlet (bargain grocery store) they had everything but toilet paper , milk, eggs, etc
We stock up continually whenever there are sales. For example, several years ago, there was a sale on Maxwell house coffee for half price-the large cans.
So I bought 4 cases-6 cans per case-we use about one of those per month. So when we open something, we write it on a list that hangs on the frig. Next time there’s a sale on that item, we restock what we’ve used(maybe more if it’s a great deal).
So all we really had to do was restock our normal monthly supplies-which we did a few weeks early. I did have hubby pick up 4 weeks worth of hamburger buns-he eats one or two per day, and I am no good at making those. When the bread runs out, I’ll simply make a loaf—plenty of yeast in the freezer and plenty of flour stashed in the pantry.
He also got some shelf stable milk to drink when the fresh milk runs out. We do not plan to go to the store for at least 3 weeks. By then, we should have arugula, green onions, and lettuce in the garden at least.
I sure do miss having a milkman. Now THAT would be great if all this brought back home dairy delivery-a silver lining.
Our local Walmart was out of T.P. but had most every thing else when he went shopping last Friday. I really don’t go out during Jan. and Feb. anyway, so staying home is no big deal for me.
I am good for now. I am a novice prepper which means I have plenty of toilet paper. This experience, though, has made me decide to move up to varsity prepping in the future.
JoMa
Two stores had zero bleach - the third had 40+ bottles.
You just have to be patient, and not go nuts when you find what you are looking for (I didn't buy 10 bottles of bleach - just the one I needed).
Yesterday at Tom Thumb in the Dallas area, deli meat shelves were sparsely stocked, the toilet paper aisle was empty, one dozen eggs was left (one per family), and milk was only available in gallons. Store workers were cleaning the empty shelves.
Not a prepper but I have a well stocked pantry and two fridges (one for diet sodas and drinks) thanks to previous buying from Sam’s Club and Trader Joe’s. Plenty beans and vegetables!
I purchased she stable milk in cartons from the Dollar Tree.
Why bother? Since we are in full “Go Communist” mode, the States already have anti-hoarding laws they can use to enter your home and take your stocked foods and supplies.
We started stocking up as soon as this coronavirus was in the news. We’re doing all right for now, and avoiding grocery stores altogether for as long as possible.
We always keep our pantry full, though.
I stopped in at the local Walmart this morning.
It wasn’t all that crowded, seemed like there were more stockers than shoppers.
Milk, eggs, TP, paper towels, paper plates, canned soup, and frozen pizza were non-existent. Most other canned and frozen goods were sparse, as was dry cereal, bottled water, toothpaste, floss, and mouthwash.
A small quantity of hand wipes magically appeared, and they were gone instantly. Most went directly from stockers to shopping carts, and never made it to the shelf.
Fresh produce was in abundant supply.
There was some unhappiness at the entrance where the store people tried unsuccessfully to limit customers to a single hand wipe each. Apart from that, most shoppers were friendlier than normal, all realizing that everyone was going through the same thing they were.
Smallish town in MO, the stores are pretty well stocked. I already had a lot of clorox wipes because I use them a lot in normal times. Probably have enough food and supplies for 45 days not counting the years worth of venison.
Plant your garden this year.
Yesterday, Vallarta had normal amount of beef & chicken & vegetables, water, milk. No eggs, much of the canned food like soup gone, no toilet paper.
I was at Target and the clerk told us that between 8am and 9am in the mornings there is toilet paper but senors get first dibs. At the time I was there 3:30pm there was no paper period.