What will you be stocking up on 'Just in case ' ?

Brambling

I was brought up by parents married in 1940 and my four eldest siblings were born during rationing so my mum worried unless she had a store cupboard for emergencies although as we didn't have much money it was just the basics just in case rationing came back.  She did say she learnt the hard way with tea to rotate stock as she never realised it could go off  I inherited my need to have a store cupboard from her as do most of my sisters, she never had the benefit of a freezer until the 80s and never got into the habit of stocking that up.

I remember as a child the sugar shortages of the 70s when the local corner shop kept sugar behind the counter for it's regular customers and for decades she always ensured she had a extra bag of sugar in. 

I live alone so I prefer not to keep too much in as i don't want to risk packet food going off, for example I have a spare bag of rice, pasta, lentils and some extra tins of tomatoes, chick peas, other tinned pulses and tinned fish.  I don't drink coffee but I'm not a nice person if I don't get my cuppa tea, I tend to stock up on the teabags I like I when it's on offer.  I use a lot of herbs and spices and keep a good range.  

I've already stocked upon seeds for the garden, I do split packets of seeds with two of sisters.

atrixa

I don't think I've ever actively stocked up on anything as such. I think my cupboards grew naturally from me trying different recipes and ending up with surplus after I'd made it. My spice rack is bursting for this reason. As it's often more economical to purchase larger quantities I end up with a supply of things like oil, toilet roll or rice, but I only replace when I'm about to run out. 

I have been thinking more about what I would do if we had no electricity for an extended period. Maybe some kind of camping stove is a good idea?

weenancyinAmerica

I remember the news reports when Hurricane Sandy hit New York. People were out begging for help finding food after only three days, because even though they knew a hurricane was coming they hadn't stocked up on anything. Some were parents with children. And the newscaster had no help to give them. Here, if there is no electricity, the stores can't open - no way to keep food fresh, lights on, or check people out when buying food. Our government suggests that you have at least enough stored for a week, two if possible. The Mormon Church recommends a year's supply and has instructions online on ways to do it no matter where you live. 

Spendless

Rather than 'stocking up' I no longer let my cupboards get too low since the first lockdown. Incidentally this is how my MIL told me to shop when I wasn't long married and had a young family and I ignored her and thought her nuts. Nowadays we never have to grocery shop because 'there's nothing in'. Instead we shop to replenish as we are running low or as 'add ons' to create more to a meal eg we invited friends last minute on Saturday round, we had alcohol and decided on a curry, we had chicken, rice, Naan breads, yogurt and mint sauce, but our friends no longer eat meat so we also added a bit more veg which we needed to buy and some additional mixers for our alcohol, but that was it, everything else we had in already. 

Ilost my job within the first week (and last week I lost my job again!). My eldest was a student in March 2020  and still is. My youngest has just finished a short course in a different part of the UK and is contemplating what to do next which includes whether she comes home tonight! Older one and gf have just been back over the weekend, his gf has yet to secure work and son's student loan has ran out. I did a food shop for them to take back yesterday with the starting point being items out of my cupboards and freezer. I have a separate fridge, which is a godsend when my young adults all turn up to stay.

YorksLass

I'll be continuing to shop as normal with a "one in use, plus a spare" approach.  We're not fussy about particular foods nor do we have special dietary needs, so we tend to buy and eat whatever is available or seasonal at a good value price.  Most of our meals are cooked from scratch with fresh ingredients so these are the things I would most worry about not being able to source.

Store cupboard wise, I wouldn't want to be without teabags, sugar (for baking), flour, some kind of fat (butter, margarine or lard), S&P, a few herbs and spices, long life or dried milk, pulses/lentils (dried or tinned), suet (for dumplings or pastry), oats and custard powder.  I always have a stock of tins of fish, meat, tomatoes, various types of beans, rice. pasta/noodles and fruit and will buy a couple extra of these if they're on a promotional price or being sold on clearance.  They get rotated so are never wasted and helped no end when the first lock down arrived and the sm shelves were empty.

Other essentials for me are toilet rolls, first aid basics, soap powder/bleach/white vinegar/bicarbonate of soda/lemon juice (for cleaning) and some toiletries (soap, toothpaste, shampoo - not fussy about them being "posh" ones, sm's own will do).   

I really hope the news about the projected increased cost of living doesn't spark panic buying again.

tooldle

Sorry  to hear your job has gone Spendless. Hopefully something better will be on your horizon.

euronorris

maisie_cat said:

Rosa_Damascena said:

Siebrie said:

I have just bought 2 bags of mixed dried spice and veg (for nasi goreng and bami goreng), and dried fried onions. We have the rest already in stock, and could last about a month.

I have also picked up extra fruit teas (while visiting parents in the Netherlands), which they don't sell in Belgium. DD1 (13) has just started drinking tea and prefers the red fruity teas. It's a cheap warming drink.

The one thing I will pick up from my pharmacy are the free iodine (?) tablets, 'just in case'.

Imodium (loperamide) and supply w/o charge is only for active illness, not the store cupboard.

I read that Siebre lives in Belgium so possibly different there

I'm also wondering if Siebre was referring to potassium iodine which is for a very different 'just in case' scenario, that many are worried may happen with the current situation.

CapricornLass

I'm another that routinely holds a lot in store - usually I hold enough for us to be able to eat quite well for three months or so.  I always have done, my mum and nan were the same.  Their family came from the Highland/rural areas and I think it stems from the fact that they used to be snowed in for several weeks at a time in the winter, as well as the war.  

However, reading this thread means that I have finally got round to ordering my gluten free flour - I definitely don't have three months worth of that at the moment!

Floss

euronorris said:

maisie_cat said:

Rosa_Damascena said:

Siebrie said:

...

The one thing I will pick up from my pharmacy are the free iodine (?) tablets, 'just in case'.

Imodium (loperamide) and supply w/o charge is only for active illness, not the store cupboard.

I read that Siebre lives in Belgium so possibly different there

I'm also wondering if Siebre was referring to potassium iodine which is for a very different 'just in case' scenario, that many are worried may happen with the current situation.

More likely for this:

https://www.brusselstimes.com/208833/belgians-rush-for-free-iodine-tablets-after-nuclear-threat

elsien

Yes, I always have a surplus of the essentials from before all the silliness with covid etc.  I consider it sensible rather than selfish to continue to replace things as I use them to maintain the stock that I do have.