Stocking up

[Joan]

Tomatoes:

A variety of British vegetables, from tomatoes to cauliflower, risk being rationed this year as farmers struggle to meet rising energy costs, the head of the National Farmers' Union (NFU) has warned.

Minette Batters, president of the England and Wales industry group, said shoppers could face limits on some vegetables, with the production of British tomatoes and cucumbers already falling.

Tomatoes and some other popular vegetables are in short supply on supermarket shelves due to bad weather in Europe and Africa, prompting a warning that stores may have to limit purchases.

The UK relies on countries such as Morocco and Spain for tomatoes during the winter.


But in Morocco, growers have struggled with cold weather, heavy rain and floods.

 

[Floris]

British farmers are losing their subsidies, this will just be the start as many will be forced to pivot or go bankrupt.

 

[Floris]

Tomatoes:

A variety of British vegetables, from tomatoes to cauliflower, risk being rationed this year as farmers struggle to meet rising energy costs, the head of the National Farmers' Union (NFU) has warned.

Minette Batters, president of the England and Wales industry group, said shoppers could face limits on some vegetables, with the production of British tomatoes and cucumbers already falling.

Tomatoes and some other popular vegetables are in short supply on supermarket shelves due to bad weather in Europe and Africa, prompting a warning that stores may have to limit purchases.

The UK relies on countries such as Morocco and Spain for tomatoes during the winter.


But in Morocco, growers have struggled with cold weather, heavy rain and floods.

it made it to dutch news now; https://nos.nl/artikel/2465131-groente-en-fruit-op-rantsoen-in-britse-supermarkten which means we will get a run on this in dutch stores too now

 

[Joan]

I'm starting to think about winter again, and need to defrost the freezer before then.

Need to go through the cupboards and work out what I need to use up and restock, however I am still paying off both the credit card and the cruise. So I have to get that done before I have any spare money.

 

[Floris]

Instead of stocking up I have started to take another look at the "nearby" dates, and started to mix in those things with my dinner. So I don't let things go to waste.

 

[Joan]

I need to go through and stock up where I can again.
I know I need more candles, and tins are getting low so must get more soup at least.

 

[Floris]

I need to go through and stock up where I can again.
I know I need more candles, and tins are getting low so must get more soup at least.

I checked, i still have over 70% of the canned stuff, and 90% of the candles, and few other things. I have to continue 'using' what i have, so it doesn't go bad, and i have to revisit what is smart to have. Never used any of the emergency heat blankets or other stuff like that, so that's all okay.

I dont have a strong storage thing that doesn't go weird that's got enough water for a bit, but i also dont know what else to get.

i want to be aware and mindful and see what i have to do if i can't go to a store for a week or can't leave apartment for a week or if power gets turned off for a week.. but i dont want to go mental and get paranoid or whatever and hoard things and never use them and then have to throw it out in five years and waste money. hard to learn and find a balance.

thanks for reminding me again, i will try to make a list and not give in on the fearmongering that's going on in social networks ..

and in case of some war situation, we're just civilians, we're at the end of the list anyway. having a week headstart is nice, but it wont solve it, and in case of a nuke, well .. then you have to leave it all behind and get into a chopper to airport to disappear on a private yet for 10k .. so that's a whole different story that 99% can't do anyway.

see.. im already paranoid

 

[Joan]

For me it's more, going without electricity. If I'm at home with no electricity for a while then how would I do. Well I've got my oodie and blankets, so I should be able to keep warm. If it was really cold I do have some handwarmers but they would be one use only as I wouldn't be able to boil them to reset them.
Then what food do I have that I can eat cold, or uncooked. I always keep tins of fish, so at least I'd be getting some protein.
Lighting wouldn't be an issue, plenty of candles and battery lights.
Entertainment wise, I have books, a portable dvd player, playing cards etc

 

[Joan]

Well this clearly invaded my dreams, I was playing trivial pursuit with my neighbours.

I do own trivial pursuit, but I barely know my neighbours!

 

[Joan]

To keep me paranoid, I've now borrowed Station 11 to listen to once I've finished with The Handmaid's Tale.

 

[Joan]

Apparently there's a shortage of sultanas and raisins!

 

[Joan]

Help! The news is saying there's a tea shortage!

 

[Joan]

Well I got tea okay, however the supermarkets are out of sugar. Neither Morrisons or Aldi had any bags

 

[Nix]

I need to do a big shop next week as I'm running out of stuff like tinned foods and ingredients for meals and treats :/

 

[Joan]

I need to do a big shop next week as I'm running out of stuff like tinned foods and ingredients for meals and treats :/

I'm trying to use all mine up, just buying one or two extras, like cheese, to make meals.

Food delivery is booked though for the 2nd, so will go through and see what else I need.

 

[Joan]

Given how bad the weather has been this year, I'm expecting veg shortages.

I want to get a USB torch before winter too, I've got wind up, but if I can get a rechargeable one that would be good too. Possibly another power bank as well.

The cat's laser pen toy has a torch on it and that's rechargeable so I do have that in an emergency and I do try to keep it charged up.

 

[Joan]

Saw a usb solar torch, was £39.99 now £12.99 in mountain warehouse so got that, was missing the usb cable but that's no problem. I've put it on charge so that's one thing ticked off my list

 

[Floris]

I am at the point where stocking up wasn't needed anymore, I feel that I hardly use it and there's always enough in the stores. What I gained was saving money as prices have dramatically gone up.

I am starting to use the stuff I have in stock.

 

[Floris]

Funny how i wrote that, and then grocery delivery service has stock-stuff for sale for $1 .. so, tonight they will deliver like 3 or 4 of each thing that I normally use and keeping in my pantry.

 

[Joan]

I realise that I've somewhat been stocking up on chutneys. I've been buying them on offer, as I'm really enjoying them in the warm weather, but I've got enough now to keep me going for months! I guess it's as there's so many types, so I don't have jars and jars of one type but one or two of several types.

 

[Joan]

Potentially more shortages on the way https://www.theguardian.com/environ...second-worst-on-record-because-of-wet-weather

The Florida hurricane has also triggered my preparedness paranoia, and im resisting the urge to buy more candles and batteries.

 

[Floris]

Potentially more shortages on the way https://www.theguardian.com/environ...second-worst-on-record-because-of-wet-weather

The Florida hurricane has also triggered my preparedness paranoia, and im resisting the urge to buy more candles and batteries.

You used up the stock already of candles and batteries?
Don't let the panic of the world get to you. Being prepared is one thing, but don't let it be paranoia.
If you have resources in stock, stick to those. Use those up before getting new stuff. There's no reason to think we will have weeks or months of 'things going so bad that we are in trouble'.

Thanks for the heads-up though, it's nice to know it's smart to use certain deals now for some canned food and things that are handy to have in stock 'just in case'. But I am not going to hoard items or invest too much. I still have quite a bit and am reluctant to use them as they're not 'comfy food' items. What I am still missing is a way to have a bunch of water that's distilled or safe to drink, that can be stored for a few years.

 

[Joan]

I do need more batteries, but more for Christmas decorations rather than torches! I'll probably buy another bag of tealights soon, as I do burn them often with wax melts.

 

[Joan]

Batteries were on offer, so I've stocked up, and the charity shop had packs of Christmas themed tealights going cheap, so I got 2 packs.