I grew up watching my mom and grandmother who lived with us, cook from a well stocked kitchen but frequent grocery/butcher/fruit stand visits for fresh meat, produce and fruit. There was always a running grocery list on the desk in the kitchen and the rule was if you took the last of something or almost the last, put it on the list. And that applied to everything from the last cookie or anything in the kitchen to TP, bath soap or anything in the family linen /bath supply closet. So that's what I did and DH and sons knew the ropes about 'the list'. But as a mom, I kept a more vigilant eye on things and would rarely get down to the last of anything before restocking.

I'm a run-around shopper, certain stores carry items I prefer so going to 3-4 stores in one shopping trip has always been my MO. I still do that but only stretch to every 2 weeks or more. The idea of ordering online and having things delivered sounds good until I think about someone else making choices for me. I have ordered certain things in the past online from Costco and did that a couple of weeks ago, but those are prepackaged items not perishables and it's either in stock or not, no one is making substitutions for me. As time goes on I see little change except in frequency and will shop more often, as I used to with more fresh items. Oh....and I can see wearing a mask for a long time, especially next fall when flu season ramps up again.

This hasn't changed my habits much, I still have to go to three stores to get what I need with about the same frequency. The big change is that empty area in the paper good aisle.

This does remind me of all the lessons about "what is life like in communist Russia" in elementary school. Get up early, stand in line, only one thing to buy in the store, if there's a line get in it - you'll need whatever it is, empty shelves. It also gives me a deeper understanding of the hoarding tendencies that the Great Depression generation had. I don't hoard but I have been quicker to buy an extra of an item.

I’ve only been shopping about every 7-10 days which is hard when feeding five, including two teenage boys. I space out trips to Trader Joe’s, Sam’s Club and Fresh Market bit as a result of minimal shopping trips, I buy more than normal. When my kids were younger and I was feeding 6 people, I tended to ”stock up” on meats/poultry/seafood so that I always had something in the freezer as our life was much busier with activities. However, I found I’d forget about certain things and they’d get lost in our freezer and I‘d have to toss them. This past year, with two in college and my husband frequently traveling overseas, I was only feeding three of us, so I stopped keeping a well stocked pantry and freezer.

Now that all but my oldest are here 24/7, we are going through way more food than ever. My kids never ate daily breakfast. They always were out of the house super early for school and just weren’t hungry. On big test days, I’d make them a breakfast sandwich. Now they sleep in, get up late and have breakfast every day; sometimes it’s a smoothie, oatmeal, avocado toast. My oldest son eats eggs every day and a lot of them!

My normal routine had been to get pork tenderloin, London Broil, skirt steak and flank steak at Sam’s. I always got my chicken, seafood and ground beef at Fresh Market. Sam’s has not had much meat at all the few times I’ve been there since this started. My freezer currently has one pack of flank steak. I did stock up at Fresh Market last week on breasts and ground beef, but we only have maybe 4 lbs (my family eats at least 2lbs for one meal depending what we are having). My freezer is pretty empty. However, living in MD, home of Perdue chicken, our local garden center has made a deal to distribute bulk chicken tomorrow. My neighbor and I are splitting a 20 lb box of antibiotic free chicken thighs (only $2.50/lb). I didn’t need breasts but ordered a 10 lb box I will give to my parents.

i placed a pick up order for Sam’s and added pork tenderloin, skirt steak and London Broil to my cart but I’m not optimistic I will get any of it. If all else fails, there are some local wholesale distributors who are selling direct to customers. I would’ve bought some already but they sell pre-selected cuts and it’s groups of four, so 4 NY strips, etc. With 5 of us, that’s not ideal. But I’ll go that route if it’s my only option. I’m not a big red meat eater so I can do without.

Now that spring has arrived and produce stands are opening back up, fresh produce will be much easier to get w/o worrying about going into a grocery store. We also have a garden so we will have a lot of our own produce thankfully!

I have always had a well-stocked pantry and freezers as well as a considerable stock of paper products (tissues, toilet paper, paper towels) on hand. Because I like to bake, I also had a good stock of different types of flour and yeast on hand. I used to shop frequently for fresh produce and fish. Now I'm buying more root vegetables to prepare (they last longer), and we're eating more vegetarian dishes.

Yesterday I had a Zoom session with a group of friends--one in Sweden, one in London, one in Switzerland, the rest of us here in the US. Every single person reported that yeast is impossible to find, and has been missing from grocery shelves for weeks. So in future, I'll be sure to have a more-than-generous supply of yeast on hand! And Dijon mustard, which peculiarly has been missing since the start of this pandemic. Go figure!

Where I work we have $1 lunch buffet so I would eat a HUGE lunch and usually skip dinner.

I don't normally buy a lot of food (hate shopping and cooking for just me)

But my unemployment money doesn't come soon I'll be buying less then I do now.

SamKaren Your resident dj

This meme pretty much describes DH and me. He’s been doing most of the shopping the last couple of years. But all of a sudden he’s come over to the other side. I hope it sticks.

LOL that meme is so funny. I‘m one of those drivers who waits til the red light goes on, then maybe a couple more errands before I fill up.

I’ve never been a stocker-upper, but DH and I just decided to order a cabinet for the basement to store extra canned goods, etc. Our food storage in the kitchen doesn't really allow for many extras. DH also wanted to buy a small extra freezer for the basement, but of course, they all seem to be out of stock right now. Hopefully we can get one before the next pandemic...

kkay_md , I think you are in Maryland? People in my area (bay Area) have been looking for yeast in typical retail outlets and unable to find it. However, others are sharing that it’s readily available in places most are not likely looking. For example, we have a small gourmet market that buys yeast and flour in bulk for their baking. They are selling both, repacking into deli containers. Ive been getting mine there. Someone posted today that our local Amish market had a lot of yeast for sale, and another posted that a small Latino market was selling bricks of yeast. Many restaurants where I live that have remained open for carry out have also turned into mini-grocery stores and offering a variety of products (meat/poultry, produce, flour, etc).

Back in early April someone started a local “food and supplies” Facebook group where people share either what they are looking for or what they have found, especially for those sought after things that are difficult to find. People also will comment on the general social distancing measures they encounter at different stores, etc. It has been a great resource.

HaHa, bpath! I'm the one filling the tank when it's half full while hubby rolls his eyes at my girl scout like tendencies. However, during last summer's planned power outages (utilities cutting power, often for days at a time, when the danger of wildfires starting was very high), my full gas tank was very much appreciated. When the power is out, the gas pumps don't work and people were desperate to fill up their vehicles.

So many people eat lunch at work, school, or get takeout/drive through on daily basis I am not surprised we are seeing shortages now that people need to be at home more. Although many schools are doing some kind of dropoff for lunches for kids.

I probably won't change my habits by much. I have always had some stock due to having lived in snow and earthquake areas, and having relatives living in hurricane areas.

My problem was that we had done some major projects the year before (kitchen remodel, pantry painting, major de-cluttering, etc) and I had never gotten my stock back up. My large walk-in pantry was close to empty after just having painted it. I probably had a 1/3 or less of the paper products I would of normally had.

So the lesson for me, was to keep things stocked and find other places to store it while work is being done, and not assume that I can just restock when convenient for my schedule.

It seems that most things we discussed a few months ago are readily available.

I do try to keep a bit more of an inventory around but not going overboard.

I don't use a lot of cleaning products and do have a little (dwindling) stash but lately I have been trying to replenish some basic cleaning sprays ( like fantastik) without bleach. I have been "keeping an eye out" now for about 6 weeks and don't see any around. I saw a huge thing of Pine Sol a few weeks ago and now am reconsidering.

What are you finding?

Shelves are full again with flour and TP and cleaning products. I don't notice any gaps in the canned goods section. What is scarce, is Pedigree canned dog food of the stew variety. But there's plenty of the solid 'pate' kind. It's probably the same stuff, just extruded in a different size, so why the shortage?

The only problem I foresee if there's a shortage again....cat food. I'm going through a TON. I'm buying cases of Sheba Perfect Portions and shopping several stores to be able to buy enough now. Chewy costs more than Walmart. I have 2 bags of dry cat food. Growing kittens.

I now keep on hand what I call an "adequate supply" of paper products and cleaning products. That whole shortage thing was ridiculous and unnecessary. I am not going though that again. The Covid thing is bad enough without that.

I haven't been able to find the bags of raw frozen chicken wings for a few months around here. Have looked at Walmart, Aldi, and 2 other grocery stores. The unfrozen wings are going for around $5 a pound the last few times I bought some.

Someone needs to breed a chicken with 6 wings!

In Feb I set up a second pantry for canned food in case stores closed, or I didn't feel comfortable going to stores. I'm now in the position where I need to start using some of the canned food before it expires, and will be judicious in how much I choose to replace.

The only thing that ran short here is toilet paper and paper towels. Oh and Lysol anything. Food wise? Everyone sold out of canned foods, but shelves were quickly restocked within probably 2 to 3 weeks of our shutdown.

My grocer has all the scarce items, but their supply chain must be off somehow. Meat is still skyhigh, pure vanilla, beef consomme and french onion soup havebeen out of stock forever... went to the Tennessee border, almost rural, (I'm in larger city in middle TN) and they had it all. Still don't have my brands back. I'm interested to see what will happen when we go back on lockdown. And we will with all this lifting of restrictions and holiday visits during the most susceptible time for infections, winter.

Paper towels is a major shortage now. Costco can't keep it in stock, and other store shelves are empty. smh

Well around here, (southeast Pa) paper products are back in stock. At times might not have your preferred brand, but next time it will be there. I have stocked up from Costco and have toilet paper and paper towels in ample supply. Really most of the shelves at the supermarket are stocked back to pre-covid times with the exception of most cleaning supplies. Sponges too were in short supply but now seem to be back.

I am sure some of this is regional.

Yes, I notice the paper towel shelves at Dollar General have been near empty to empty. Toilet paper is available tho.

I actually had plenty of just about everything - except disinfectant wipes.

I have moved to a place where it takes 35 minutes just to drive to a real supermarket - so I stock up anyway. I also like canning things like pickles, applesauce, tomato sauce and salsa, and I get a yearly half a pig and half a lamb. I'd joined Misfits Market in January, for fresh veggies I didn't have to drive in to find.

The last time I'd been down in CT before all this happened, I'd stocked up on TP and paper towels - because I can't find my brand up here - I like Marcal's "paper from paper, not from trees" recycled approach, and their towels are of a lot better quality than 7th Generation which shreds when you look at it. In fact, while I've bought paper towels since then (alas not Marcal), I still have about 15 rolls of TP left here from that run. (Done entirely without knowing that TP was going to be a shortage.)

There are things I can't find up here, and I always stock up on when I am back at my old neighborhood in CT for a variety of reasons. And there's a neighborhood Trader Joe's - so I still have coffee from THAT run! (I even donated some to the town food pantry.)

The week before our state shut down I bought a pack of disinfectant wipes - there was already starting a run on them, and I would have bought more but there were only three left, and I try to be considerate of others. It took until last month before I could find more....

BUT, I discovered I'd stocked the guest bath for overnight visitors with a small bottle of isopropyl alcohol. So I can use that to make my own wipes.

I noticed pasta and tomato sauce were in short supply in groceries, but I don't consider them (or milk or bread) to be household staples, and I could do with the little I had left from a couple years ago canning of the tomato sauce.

I am raising my own chickens, so a surplus of eggs. I'm now growing (since I've been here for about two years now) many veggies outside. (I have to finish picking most of them later today).

What this has done is validate my choice to prep food supplies and to encourage me to make sure other necessaries are already on stock for unforeseen events in the future. .

What I miss is really good quality seafood. This side of the state... pppftt. April had been the Stew Leonard's crawfish extravaganza time... I missed out going back down there to snatch some of them up.

Food & normal day to day stuff is stocked, but the few times I’ve been in a store like Ikea or Bed Bath and Beyond the shelves are miserably bare. Not once has the item I’ve wanted to buy been in stock.

In the beginning it was hard finding paper goods, then no problem until last week when I was placing an order online for pickup. No paper towels, paper plates except those with pumpkins on them, no face tissue, No PET FOOD, several cleaning products like Swiffer Mop pads, and I know there's more but I can't remember.

I was shocked.

Interesting how things have changed five months after the original post. I still have trouble finding disinfecting wipes and I noticed that my store still limits how much yeast you can buy. Eggs and fresh produce have been back to normal levels. I've fallen back into my normal buying habits, but I plan to restock frozen vegetables once we go through what we have. I didn't realize there was a paper towel shortage because we use so few that I haven't needed to buy any.

Interesting as to how things are now several months after this thread was started. Our groceries are well stocked now with the occasional items low. We do not use alot of canned products and so I'm not stocking up on that. Maybe I will buy a few canned items to have on hand in case of a second shut-down, although I really, really don't like to. We also don't use alot of paper products. Paper plates are only used for picnics, etc. and while we do use paper towels, we have cut that use and use cloths around the house. I have some multi-use disposable cloths than can be washed out and reused a few times and hubby has some similar industrial type ones for his shop. I have washable pads for my steam mop and dust mop, etc. I will probably increase our supply of frozen veggies just in case. My produce market is open through mid-December and then reopens early spring, so I will miss that. We must not be "foodies" (although we love to eat) but I do not like grocery shopping and refuse to go multiple times a week. Trader Joes is a ways from me, so when I go, it's a big haul LOL. Interesting Lukki about non-food stores, but I have not been in one yet, so I don't know how the inventory is here. I have not heard any complaints though.

I am finding that a lot of spices are hard to come by. Our large grocery chain is out of the things I need week after week. I finally have enough items on my list to make a Penzeys order so am doing that today.

Things are generally improved here with having meat and produce at some grocery stores lately. Luckily, dh works in a neighboring state and has been able to buy meat at the store there, so we've been alright, but only because of that. Most grocery stores here will have empty spaces where produce used to be kept. Ex: on Sunday, there might be onions and carrots in stock, but nothing else. On Wed, there might be apples and lettuce, but nothing else. It's been a challenging time to grocery shop. So I pick up what I can, when I can. Unfortunately, Costco and other markets will not ship fresh produce or meats to our location, so we've been relying on what I or dh can wrangle up on our food finding expeditions.

Our canned goods and pantry staples have improved, but we do have episodes of empty spaces on the shelves. Couldn't buy a dried bean of any kind for months, nor canned for that matter. Now, I will see about 5 bags of dried beans on the shelf. I'll buy two and leave the rest for someone else. Flour and yeasts are making a come back, but are hit or miss here.

We will have TP and paper towels in grocery stores sporadically. I've taken the buy online approach to paper products. Staples dot com has been very good in this regard.

Where we are not improving one bit is cleaning supplies. Liquid dishwashing soap, automatic dishwasher detergent, bleach, windex, rubbing alcohol, etc...has been empty shelves since this all started. I don't know why we can't get any, Good thing I had a large stock of those except for liquid dish soap. That, I have to online purchase for shipment to my house.

It's not like we live in AK or anything. But we are a tourist destination and I have a feeling that between locals and then tourists who drive here, we get cleared out as soon as anything gets stocked on a shelf. I can tell a tourist by looking at them and their shopping carts are much too packed for the usual 5 day stay here. We think they are stocking up and bringing the items back to home, wherever that may be. &%$#

What area are you in, @SEA SEA?

Lake Tahoe

Have you tried driving down to Reno for better shopping choices?

Product availability in the Bay Area has been mostly back to normal for many months now. One exception is disinfecting wipes, an item easily subbed for using a paper towel and alcohol or chlorinated water, or Purell or equivalent (depending on the item needing a wipe).

We don't stockpile anything, buying food as we want or need to. When the shortages were still raging, we jumped at buying a 1 pound brick of
yeast at Costco for something like $5. It sits on a shelf unused and I chuckle
when I see it, wondering why we thought that was a good idea.

Product availability in my area has been pretty much business as usual for months. Except for some odd, off-the-wall items..........ice cream bars, any boxed cake mix other than devil's food or yellow (I need a spice cake mix for a particular recipe my family loves), frozen pearl onions. I am also greatly missing the bulk foods offerings at my local grocer. They have stopped offering any self-serve because of the pandemic and have instead offered them in pre-packaged options but the herbs and spices selection is dismal!! I prefer to purchase them fresh (or fresher) on an as-needed basis but they must have just cut back on their bulk stock overall.

I had considered stopping at my closest Trader Joe's - a 40 minute drive - when I was in that area last week for other reasons but there was a ridiculously long line waiting to get in and there was nothing I needed that badly to make me wait 45 minutes to an hour just for that privilege!

When the paper shortage had just begun I happened to be almost out of Puff's tissues, something I make sure to never run out of, and I couldn't find any box of tissues anywhere so I stocked up on those little personal pack of tissues. Glad I did.

This is one item we always buy and so far they've never been out. We get 2 packages a month. We never bought them before Covid. :)

Elmer,

Yes, Of course. That was something way back when, we used to do with frequency. But due to tourist overload for 20 years now, it takes 30 to 60 mins to get to the state line, which is a 2 mile drive from my house. So, by the time I've not even hit the open road, I've blown too many hours of my day before I get to store #1. We only have the one road in Tahoe. With a gazillion tourists plugging up the works, leaving the house is an exercise in not only patience, but bravery. I go to Costco a only a couple times a year because of this. That takes usually two hours one way to the closest one. The one in Reno is a considerable longer drive. Dh leaves for work at 6ish am, before the tourists have woken up. Thus, he can do the commute without as much frustration.

LOL!! And those, together with Hagen Daz Coffee Almond Crunch mini ice cream bars, are the very creatures that seem to have vanished from my stores. All the other Klondike flavors are available......just no Heath. And full size ice cream bars (except the coffee almond) also seem to be available sporadically but are more than I want at a single serving.

I'm in a large suburb outside of Denver, we are nearly back to normal but the grocery prices are up, up, up. Some complain on our town FB page about the availability of sanitizing wipes but I have had no trouble finding them.

DH likes plain Klondike minis and we haven't seen them in weeks. We do have plenty of the Reese's version.

And here I thought my addiction to Klondike bars was my dirty little secret. This is something else we started eating and it taste just like homemade.

Patti Labelle, oh my. I found it at Walmart. Have bought many times. :)

All those peaches in the picture, just like what you buy.

Making sure I have more back ups. I usually had maybe one or two of an item but now I've seen empty shelves for a long time.....example, my husband likes pickled beets...I can't believe there have been weeks of none, why is this item so desired?

Finally found some Lysol spray. The sign said two is the limit so I took only two, and was glad they had any.

If you buy a pound of yeast, you need to store it in the freezer, preferably in a tightly sealed jar. Vacuum seal it, if you can, but I usually do not. I use yeast once or twice a week, and so I was very upset when that was difficult to find, but a pound of yeast will last me quite a while - probably a couple of years in the freezer.

We've always kept earthquake supplies, and so really nothing has changed, although we will now stock a bit more toilet paper than usual. We used to let it get close to running out, but now we restock before we get too low.

I'm keeping more dried vegetables on hand - but only the ones I really like, such as cabbage, mushrooms, green peas, onions, garlic, bell pepper, and chilies. I've always kept dried chilies on hand, and I always have homemade chili sauce on hand, plus I keep chilies growing in my back yard, which produce chilies all year. I haven't tried dried corn yet, but it might be okay. I buy frozen corn instead, and I use that frequently. The only other frozen vegetable that I normally keep is petit pois. I do prefer them to dried peas, but it depends on how I will use them. I am always diligent at keeping dried beans on hand, as well as dried pasta.

I don't like storing too much in the freezer - for one thing, if there is an earthquake, the electricity could be off for two or three days, and then that could be a disaster for some frozen foods. I really do like dried foods because they are the easiest to store and have a long shelf life. I don't buy much in cans at all, except tomatoes.

I did a bit more food preservation, canning (got the extra jars early) and dehydrating for the most part. A bit more stocking up on some stuff, like cat food, tea and coffee, and some spices/herbs.

Decided to try out a produce service so I don't have to go out as much as the weather gets crappy.

One of the biggest changes to my shopping habits is paying attention to what others are saying are out around them. I now kind of keep my eyes on the shelves for stuff when I'm shopping to help report in what supplies are.

Most products are back, but not always in pre-pandemic quantities. Isopropyl alcohol can still require some effort to find. It's a lot more expensive now. That and hydrogen peroxide used to be extremely cheap.

I'm operating on the assumption that we'll have another shutdown this winter. Our infection rates have been climbing steadily since re-opening. Even most of the age groups that had fairly flat rates have been trending upward in the last month. I've keep things stocked to levels that are higher than my normal preference, but I didn't go wild and turn the basement into a warehouse or anything like that.

I went back to the one in use, one in the pantry method we gave up when we became empty nesters. I also stock-up of paper goods and wipes. When I see them I buy an extra pack or two. I stock up more on items e with a long fridge life like eggs, bacon, butter and cheese. Since we don't eat out now, we go through them more quickly.

I have to agree with Moxie in that I am expecting a shutdown this winter. I keep watching what is happening in Europe. Several areas are now mandating masks if you are outside. I currently need only a few things like additional coffee and cat food to last until March when things normally warm up. I am currently using a milk delivery service that also does some foodstuffs but my driveway is not the best to walk on when icy so probably will not be using them if this winter is bad.

I find some things are in abundance one week and gone the next. For instance, Brawny towels were in abundance last week and I bought some though I didn't need them. Tonight nada.

All these people thinking busines as usual, and mask mandates ending, there will be another shutdown. I bought all of my groceries for the next few months that I could buy ahead of time. What we always eat, and use. I'm not going to be going to grocery stores with all those idiots who think it's okay not to wear a mask. A one time deal. And only what we will need for the next few months. It's already beginning. Unless someone makes large strides.

Only surprise is that it is happening this quickly. I think it was yesterday that I was watching a favorite YT person and they mentioned that in NY/NYC, it was mandated that people be tested every two weeks. He lives outside of the city but visits the city frequently. It was not clear if it was the whole state or just the city. If it is true which I have strong doubts if the statement is true but it would help an area implement measures quicker than simply waiting until hospitals filled up.

maifleur, there is no mandate in NY (city or state) to be tested every two weeks. But there are new restrictions on gathering size, restaurants, schools, etc. in various parts of the state, which you can read about here: https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-announces-new-cluster-action-initiative

Update: Went to two grocery stores today. Found meat, albeit exorbitantly priced, but it was there. Found produce section stocked. I bought fruits and veggies which was nice to be able to do for a change. :-) Bread section empty, as usual. Bread has been cleared out since the pandemic hit. Before then, everyone was gluten-free, keto, low carb, can't eat bread. Not anymore, or we just don't get bread here. Hard to tell. Anyhow, thought I'd share my improved shopping adventure.

I'm doing limited shopping. Costco twice in 6 months, Target only curbside, food co-op every six weeks, Farmer's Market every 2 weeks and Trader Joes every 2 or 3 weeks. A local high-end grocery every 10 days or so. Haven't found paper products that I prefer, because I used to buy them at Target but they won't deliver or do curbside and I'm not going inside. Someone posted (here?) about Staples having TP, so I looked at they had the Scott 1 ply I need for my septic, but they had their own house brand that looks identical for much less $$, so I bought 2 packs of 20 rolls. Delivered in 1 day for free. They also had some sanitizing wipes (their brand) and a free hand sanitizer if you spent more than $30. I have NEVER been able to make their website work for me, so I ended up in a chat, then a phone convo, but it all worked out. I should be good for many months.