Author Topic: Pandemic hoarding  (Read 262173 times)

Frugalbeach

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Pandemic hoarding
« on: July 17, 2020, 06:53:52 AM »
Question...has anyone else noticed an explosion of hoarding behaviors in friends, family, neighbors?  I'm talking crazy stockpiling that would last regular folks years?  For example, 30 to 40 cans of condensed soup in the pantry when you've never seen this person eat soup?
I won't even go to paper towels or toilet paper or Clorox products.
Specific examples would be appreciated (and fun)!

Pigeon

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #1 on: July 17, 2020, 07:05:52 AM »
Not at all.  I do think many people, myself included, have significantly larger than normal grocery orders because we shop less frequently and do not want to make extra trips to the store if we are out of something.  But I have not noticed what I would consider hoarding.

slappy

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #2 on: July 17, 2020, 07:07:39 AM »
I haven't noticed anything recently. My area is very low in cases and I haven't seen any empty shelves at the store.

NotJen

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #3 on: July 17, 2020, 07:08:43 AM »
Well, I haven't seen any friends, family, or neighbors in 4 months, so I don't know if they're hoarding...

But no, I haven't heard of or witnessed this behavior when I've been out shopping.

OtherJen

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #4 on: July 17, 2020, 07:09:42 AM »
Question...has anyone else noticed an explosion of hoarding behaviors in friends, family, neighbors?  I'm talking crazy stockpiling that would last regular folks years?  For example, 30 to 40 cans of condensed soup in the pantry when you've never seen this person eat soup?
I won't even go to paper towels or toilet paper or Clorox products.
Specific examples would be appreciated (and fun)!

I've only visited two other houses since we went into shutdown in mid-March. People (including us) seem to be stocking up a bit to avoid grocery shopping frequently, but none of it is beyond a few months' supply.

Sibley

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #5 on: July 17, 2020, 07:34:51 AM »
Are people stockpiling a bit more? I've seen some of that. I haven't seen anyone who's tipped over the edge into hoarding. However, the stress of the pandemic absolutely could contribute to an existing tendency or problem to make it much more serious. IE, someone who's a bit of a worrywart might be pushed into a full blown anxiety disorder.

Frugalbeach, if you're seeing evidence of mental illness in your friends and family, it would be a kindness to gently encourage them to talk to their doctor.

dcheesi

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #6 on: July 17, 2020, 08:01:30 AM »
Nothing like the early days of the pandemic, no.

Then again, I'm in a region that's not spiking to the degree that others have; I wouldn't be surprised to see a resurgence of panic buying in the hardest hit areas. It's obvious that things are going to get a lot worse in those hot-spots before they get better, and hunkering down with zero outside contact may be warranted (or even mandated) for some period of time.

Christof

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #7 on: July 17, 2020, 08:02:25 AM »
In February we added to our pantry to last four weeks instead of two to cater for an unexpected quarantine. But I wouldn‘t call that hoarding. We did have a lack of toilet paper, bread and disinfectant in March and April, but that feels like a distant past now. Many states have less than a dozen new cases per day and the whole country hoovers around 500 at a population that is a quarter of the US. Shopping is totally back to normal levels, at least in grocery stores.

LaineyAZ

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #8 on: July 17, 2020, 08:10:38 AM »
Went to the Costco here in AZ for the first time in 5 months and was pleasantly surprised that the shelves seemed full. However, at the local Safeway, supplies of a variety of items seem definitely thinned out.

For myself, I think it's a good idea to stock up because I expect the fall/winter 2020/2021 to be worse in every way:  increased Covid-19 cases, increased deaths, supply chain issues, more homeless, and more economic fallout.  I'm not at the point of buying the 20 lb. bag of rice at Costco, but I'm close.

alex753

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #9 on: July 17, 2020, 08:22:26 AM »
I've noticed there is a shortage/hoarding of isopropyl alcohol.  I've uses it to sanitize my electric razor for a long time and it's pretty important to me to keep from getting breakouts from the bacteria buildup when it is not sanitized.  I had to get some online.

At least paper products are readily available now.  That was ridiculous.

But yes.  Peoples' behavior over this has been completely ludicrous and most are erroneously scared and or terrified.  Not how life was intended to be lived.

« Last Edit: July 17, 2020, 08:24:29 AM by alex753 »

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #10 on: July 17, 2020, 08:32:22 AM »
I personally think it is a good idea to stock up. I agree with LaineyAZ that this fall is predicted to begin a second phase of the virus outbreak. At that point, the normal flu season and colds. It makes sense to stock up on things you will eat or essentials like toilet paper and OTC meds. Don't forget the pets needs too. My dogs eat prescription dog food and my Vets office ran out of the food! So I had to order it on line and it was backordered a while. I don't think people should go to the store and buy 10 overflowing carts of supplies, but each week throw in a few extras to stock up.

It doesn't hurt to stock up and you can be generous with your supplies. Prepare a dinner for a person in need or donate some to the food pantry.

We have all been accustomed to full shelves in our stores. Our new reality may be that we may need to get used to empty shelves.


LaineyAZ

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #11 on: July 17, 2020, 08:52:43 AM »
I personally think it is a good idea to stock up. I agree with LaineyAZ that this fall is predicted to begin a second phase of the virus outbreak. At that point, the normal flu season and colds. It makes sense to stock up on things you will eat or essentials like toilet paper and OTC meds. Don't forget the pets needs too. My dogs eat prescription dog food and my Vets office ran out of the food! So I had to order it on line and it was backordered a while. I don't think people should go to the store and buy 10 overflowing carts of supplies, but each week throw in a few extras to stock up.

It doesn't hurt to stock up and you can be generous with your supplies. Prepare a dinner for a person in need or donate some to the food pantry.

We have all been accustomed to full shelves in our stores. Our new reality may be that we may need to get used to empty shelves.

This is the other point I wanted to make.  If we do miraculously get a vaccine this winter and things go back to normal-ish, the worst part of stocking up is that you can then donate to the food bank or someone in need.  So what's the harm? 
and I guess we should define "stocking up" vs. "hoarding" as in, don't be the guy who went out and bought all of the hand sanitizer so he could charge his friends and neighbors a big mark-up when they needed some.  But being prudent and getting some extra of items you already use?  Yes, that's more than reasonable.

OtherJen

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #12 on: July 17, 2020, 09:19:05 AM »
I personally think it is a good idea to stock up. I agree with LaineyAZ that this fall is predicted to begin a second phase of the virus outbreak. At that point, the normal flu season and colds. It makes sense to stock up on things you will eat or essentials like toilet paper and OTC meds. Don't forget the pets needs too. My dogs eat prescription dog food and my Vets office ran out of the food! So I had to order it on line and it was backordered a while. I don't think people should go to the store and buy 10 overflowing carts of supplies, but each week throw in a few extras to stock up.

It doesn't hurt to stock up and you can be generous with your supplies. Prepare a dinner for a person in need or donate some to the food pantry.

We have all been accustomed to full shelves in our stores. Our new reality may be that we may need to get used to empty shelves.

Yes to stocking up on pet food! We had about 2 weeks' worth of rabbit chow left when the shutdown started in March, and the only remaining available bag size was 25 lbs through an online store. So yeah, it may have looked like hoarding to buy a giant bag for 2 rabbits but 1) they needed to eat, and 2) it ended up being way cheaper per pound than the smaller bags. We will keep buying the bulk size and breaking it down into smaller containers to stay fresh, even after the pandemic is over.

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #13 on: July 17, 2020, 09:41:01 AM »
Yes, agree with OtherJen. I recently bought three 5 lb. bags of rice. I broke the bags down into 15 one lb. bags and vacuum packed them flat. We don't eat rice every day but now I have a nice supply. They are stacked neatly and waiting to be used. The price was pretty cheap too. Very frugal!

I used to do a lot of purchasing at my old job. Mostly food ingredients for the projects we worked on. I have the mentality of never wanting to run out of things. At my job, if we ran out of ingredients, that meant down time. I never allowed us to run out of anything and we never had down time due to running out of ingredients. So, I try to apply that thinking to my pantry at home.

Tyler durden

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #14 on: July 17, 2020, 09:49:49 AM »
Put me in the hoarding of pet food as well. That’s a store i only need to go to for pet food. If I can avoid single unnecessary trips all the better.

We have 120 pounds of food for our 40 pound dog.

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #15 on: July 17, 2020, 10:11:57 AM »
Tyler durden, nice you are taking good care of your dog. My only concern is that the dog might get tired of the food and won't eat it. My dogs are on prescription dog food and the Vet has changed the type a few times which means I end up with food the dogs are no longer eating. So, between the two dogs we ended up having close to 2 cases of canned dog food they were not eating. Each case costs about $38! So, we ended up donating it to the local animal welfare. So much for stocking up! At least the food got donated and some dog who needed it got it. Better than tossing it.

Dicey

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #16 on: July 17, 2020, 10:20:08 AM »
I keep multiple pantries. At the beginning of the pandemic, I thought it would be a good excuse to work them down. Then I got worried about potential food shortages. Four months in, my larders are maybe 10% depleted. I think I'll just keep wwhittling them down slowly.

slappy

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #17 on: July 17, 2020, 10:22:25 AM »
Put me in the hoarding of pet food as well. That’s a store i only need to go to for pet food. If I can avoid single unnecessary trips all the better.

We have 120 pounds of food for our 40 pound dog.

This will be me once I can finally get to Costco.

kanga1622

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #18 on: July 17, 2020, 10:33:42 AM »
I don't personally know of any. But I am also one that will buy a year's worth of shampoo if I find a good sale. And I just bought a year's worth of conditioner because I didn't want to pay shipping and it can only be purchased online.

We have a higher stockpile than normal of most household items and some grocery items. As in, I will buy/look for more when we have 2 full containers in the closet rather than 1. We have MORE than enough storage space to keep extra laundry soap, peroxide, hand soap, TP, etc. on hand. And we've already run out of some things and been unable to replace. Several items we eat on a regular basis (1-2 times a month) have been out of stock since March. So either our store decided not to carry them or they just are always sold out when I shop every 2 weeks.

My cart always looks nuts when I go to Walmart but I am generally shopping every 2 weeks and it takes a lot to feed a family of 4 for that long.

We solve the pet food issues by ordering online from Chewy. It is delivered to my door in a matter of days. But as soon as we put a 25 lb bag in the "open" canister, I place an order for the next bag. All the while we have a fully unopened bag in the closet.  So we usually have something between 50-75 lbs of food on hand for our 80 lb dog. He eats a 25lb bag in a bit less than a month.

Rosy

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #19 on: July 17, 2020, 10:44:16 AM »
I have stocked up for the pandemic as well as for the hurricane season.

That means two entirely different shopping criteria
- hurricane means power outage. How and what to eat when you have no refrigeration (meat will go bad) - no way to cook - and the misery of no AC.
No electricity means candles and batteries and besides that plenty of drinking water and washing water. A bit of comfort food and candy as well as normal emergency supplies.

For the pandemic it means regular food and supplies for two months at least - YMMV

OP as far as the canned soup when they don't normally eat canned soup - yeah, that may be foolish.
Do I want to make fun of hoarding - hardly. If some extra soup in the cupboard makes people feel more in control and keep their sanity - let them.

Right now it is a good idea to have some extra on hand and if you don't need it you can always donate. It is what I normally do when the expiration dates on my hurricane food supplies are imminent.
Admittedly I have some prepper tendencies so yeah, certain things I keep a years supply of - but - two shelves full is all I allow myself of those items.

... and yes, we have a two-three months supply of catfood:).

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #20 on: July 17, 2020, 10:58:30 AM »
I order a lot of food items on line and other household essentials. I shop at some really weird places at times too. Places that are oddball. I have searched and searched for disinfectant spray and cannot find any place to ship it that is a fair price. You can probably get it on ebay and pay $45 for a can of it. Not going to do that.

I did find Lysol liquid concentrate and mixed it with water and put it in a spray bottle. We use that for incoming shipments but I would prefer the spray because it is not so wet. Anyone have information on where to buy Lysol spray or another brand of disinfectant? Any place I find it on line says it has to be picked up in the store, shipping not available.


Spiffy

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #21 on: July 17, 2020, 11:01:34 AM »
Here in central Texas the shelves are empty of toilet paper, lysol wipes, etc. at my HEB. It had gotten back to normal over the last few weeks. Now it is starting again.

Captain Cactus

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #22 on: July 17, 2020, 12:28:55 PM »
A work friend in CA was ordering from various bulk purchase places at once back in April... I'm talking 200 rolls of toilet paper, boxed cake mixes, etc... it was because of people like her that there were shortages for everyone else. 

OtherJen

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #23 on: July 17, 2020, 12:52:21 PM »
Yes, agree with OtherJen. I recently bought three 5 lb. bags of rice. I broke the bags down into 15 one lb. bags and vacuum packed them flat. We don't eat rice every day but now I have a nice supply. They are stacked neatly and waiting to be used. The price was pretty cheap too. Very frugal!

I used to do a lot of purchasing at my old job. Mostly food ingredients for the projects we worked on. I have the mentality of never wanting to run out of things. At my job, if we ran out of ingredients, that meant down time. I never allowed us to run out of anything and we never had down time due to running out of ingredients. So, I try to apply that thinking to my pantry at home.

I'm the same way. I hate running out of staples, especially now when I go out for supplies once a week at most (rather than running to the neighborhood Aldi whenever the list was 5-10 items long). We bought a 25-lb bag of certified gluten-free oatmeal and a 20-lb bag of rice at the start of the pandemic and broke those down into smaller packages. Even with the shipping cost for the oatmeal (purchased direct from Bob's Red Mill), it was cheaper per lb than buying the 2-lb bags in the grocery store. As long as it's something we can feasibly use up in a year, I prefer to buy bulk.

TikiTime

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #24 on: July 17, 2020, 01:22:59 PM »
Words of wisdom from a covid positive household.  That toilet paper is needed.  I had a month's worth of tp for 4 adults when we were quarantined.  Diarrhea is a lovely symptom, the tp was gone in 8 days.  Luckily, a friend picked me up a huge pack from Sam's, enough to normally last half a year.  I am very grateful to now have that on hand.  Double the amount of detergent so you never run out of a month's supply.  Anything you need to disinfect, etc., overcompensate.  You need more than you think! 

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #25 on: July 17, 2020, 01:57:07 PM »
Here is another thing I am going to stock up on in the next few days is pet friendly salt for our driveway and sidewalks. I buy it in July or August to make sure we have it on hand for winter. We have about six 50# bags in the garage and I am going to buy five more 50# bags so we will have a stockpile of 11 bags. Some winters we only go thru 5 or 6 bags and some twice that amount. Buying it now will cost less before they jack the prices up in the winter and will ensure we have it when we need it. Sometimes they run out of it and you have to buy something you don't want. We want the pet friendly stuff so the dogs feet don't get burned. Plus, avoiding the hardware store with the virus out there.


PDXTabs

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #26 on: July 17, 2020, 02:06:34 PM »
Lysol wipes

Lysol wipes are the one thing that I consistently can't get and I'd really like. But I don't think that it is hording, I think that usage is way up.

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #27 on: July 17, 2020, 02:44:51 PM »
PDXTabs, I also have had a hard time finding Lysol wipes. Don't know if you are interested but what I did was buy baby wipes. I got the Walmart brand. Then I poured rubbing alcohol into the container. Maybe 6 ounces, enough to saturate all the wipes. I use that to wipe down things. Probably not approved by hospital standards but works for me!

Cranky

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #28 on: July 17, 2020, 02:50:10 PM »
I haven’t inspected anyone else’s pantry, but mine is definitely a lot fuller than usual. I don’t want to worry about going to the store. I don’t want to worry if I can’t get a pickup slot.

I think it is not far fetched to think that this winter might be kind of bad. Let’s just say that I plan to have my thanksgiving turkey in the freezer by Sept. 1.

Minimalism is dead to me!

TheFrenchCat

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #29 on: July 17, 2020, 05:34:46 PM »
I'm glad other people are shopping less frequently too.  I've only been shopping once every 2 weeks.  Once I got called a hoarder by some random lady who was buying a single bag of stuff.  Uh,yeah, no.  I didn't even have any toilet paper or sanitizing products, just food.  At least she had a mask.

GuitarStv

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #30 on: July 17, 2020, 06:50:19 PM »
What's your definition of hoarding?  I'm keeping a couple months worth of non-perishables now, where I'd rarely have more than a week or two of extra food before.  It's mostly stuff we would eat anyway, but an awful lot more than we would normally keep.

Channel-Z

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #31 on: July 17, 2020, 06:55:21 PM »
Lysol and wipes are still difficult to find. One of my co-workers basically goes out every night looking for them.

I had heard people were panic-shopping at places like Walmart in the fringes of my metro area because they didn't want to go shopping with a mask (Walmart mask mandate begins Monday).

MayDay

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #32 on: July 17, 2020, 07:13:12 PM »
On one hand you consider us hoarding. We normally keep a very lean pantry. When shortages started happening we suddenly shopped a ton to build up 2-4 weeks worth of supplies.

Buffaloski Boris

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #33 on: July 17, 2020, 07:16:42 PM »
Hoarding is such an ugly word. I prefer prudence. Prudent people stock supplies before an entirely predictable time of adversity. Like a winter return of COVID. So I don’t know of any food hoarders. I do know a few people practicing prudence.


SwordGuy

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #34 on: July 17, 2020, 07:30:30 PM »
We make sure we have supplies in case we get hammered by a hurricane (again).  We've had 2 or 3 bad ones in the last 5 years. 

We've also increased our stock of key items and some staples.    But more on the let's have several weeks on hand more than usual.

Once we get our old home sold and have time and mental energy to really put some thought into it, I would like to up our supplies to a 3 month level for key items.


simmias

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #35 on: July 17, 2020, 07:49:04 PM »
Hoarding is such an ugly word. I prefer prudence. Prudent people stock supplies before an entirely predictable time of adversity. Like a winter return of COVID. So I don’t know of any food hoarders. I do know a few people practicing prudence.

Found the hoarder!

mountain mustache

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #36 on: July 17, 2020, 09:12:54 PM »
After the experience I had trying to buy food in Arizona in March and April, I find myself stocking up more and more this Summer. There were weeks in mid-March/early April where I could get almost no food at the stores. I work really early in the morning, so my only time to shop was in the evenings, when shelves were empty. I would say I never "stock up" in one visit. But each time I go shopping I buy "1 for now, 2 for later" which is a good rule of thumb. I am keeping more rice, dried beans, canned tomatoes, coconut milk, etc on hand...these are staples I use all the time *anyway* not random foods I'm buying just for the sake of it. But literally in Tucson, AZ I could not find rice, beans, pasta, canned tomatoes of any kind, peanut butter, frozen veggies, etc for over 6 weeks at one point...so now I just have a pantry that is stocked for 2-3 months if I absolutely *need* it so I don't have to go through a stressful situation of being unprepared as I was this Spring. Also toilet paper. I last saw toilet paper in a grocery store in early March, and saw it for the first time during Covid in June. 3 months without seeing toilet paper on a store shelf. Ridiculous. Now I will have a years worth all the time just because.

Buffaloski Boris

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #37 on: July 18, 2020, 05:53:28 AM »
Hoarding is such an ugly word. I prefer prudence. Prudent people stock supplies before an entirely predictable time of adversity. Like a winter return of COVID. So I don’t know of any food hoarders. I do know a few people practicing prudence.

Found the hoarder!

Wrats! Outted!

K_in_the_kitchen

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #38 on: July 18, 2020, 01:06:59 PM »
I suppose someone can look at what I did and consider it hoarding.  We had almost zero canned/prepared food, which is stupid when you live where a natural disaster could knock out power and water.  Now the pantry is full.  Did the person at Costco think I was a hoarder when I bought a case of strawberry preserves?  Maybe, but I don't care.  I added to our dried food stores, including buying 50# of popping corn.  I stocked up on several quarts of cooking oil.  I went from having 2 jars of peanut butter to having 8-10.  I decided to stock 6-12 months worth of toiletries and OTC medications.  I also changed our dog food policy, making sure we buy/order a new bag as soon as the previous bag is opened (any more than that and my fussy dog will refuse the food for being rancid).

I call it being prepared and prudent.  At the same time, when a toilet paper order I hadn't expected to ship actually did, we took the box of 80 individually wrapped rolls to the local food bank.  As I started using some of the canned foods I'd stocked up on, I got a better sense of how much we might need, and sent cases of canned milk, canned corn, canned green beans, and more to the food bank as well, including 25# of rice.

One thing I haven't done is stock up on water.  I don't think it's necessary for Covid, but it would be in a natural disaster.  We used to store water, but it's a hassle to manage, especially since we don't typically drink bottled water.  I think I'll buy another set of Berkey filters and plan on using bleach + filtering if we end up without safe water.

centwise

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #39 on: July 18, 2020, 02:02:48 PM »
My friends and family have joined the throngs who have been baking more (so, stocking up on flour and sugar) and cooking at home a lot more (buying more groceries), but I don't think any of them have engaged in panic-buying or hoarder-level of stocking up.

At my house I habitually keep a large stock of pantry staples, I always have some vegetables and meat in the freezer, and I typically buy giant packages of Costco paper products (TP, paper towels and kleenex) that last for 5-6 months.

If someone saw my pantry they might have thought that I was "hoarding" during the pandemic lockdown. But actually I was in great shape when the lockdown started. I already had a large quantity and variety of dried legumes, rice (three kinds), sugar, various flours, etc. So there was no need for panic buying; I simply did not need to buy any of the items that were in short supply. I shopped for freshies and dairy every three weeks, and I didn't buy toilet paper until June. Now the grocery store shelves are pretty full, and if there are any shortages, I haven't noticed them.

So I'm in the camp of those who would call it "prudence and good planning"!
« Last Edit: July 18, 2020, 04:34:50 PM by centwise »

Roadrunner53

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #40 on: July 18, 2020, 03:08:48 PM »
It makes perfect sense to stock up. They want us to stay in our homes as much as possible so it makes no sense to go out shopping every single day for food and household items. People can stock up slowly and it doesn't have to cost a fortune. Just starting off with the basics like rice, pasta, pasta sauces, beans, canned tuna, canned chicken, canned beef, canned corned beef. Canned beans and dried beans. I am not a big fan of canned veggies but I buy corn, green beans and would consider peas.

I would encourage people to stock up slowly and build a full pantry.

What unique things have some of you stocked up on?

Dave1442397

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #41 on: July 18, 2020, 03:45:18 PM »
25lb bags of rice are completely normal in Asian households :)

I stocked up on cereal, because our local Wegmans ran out of my favorite (Fall Harvest) at one point, so now I have maybe a couple of months worth in the house.

Nothing else, really. We went to Costco a couple of months ago, and next time we go I'll buy more toilet paper and paper towels, but I always do that. We have plenty of room to store paper products, so we usually have a six-month supply sitting around.

One thing I stopped buying is chocolate, and candy in general. I've lost 28lbs in the past twelve weeks, and I need to keep it off!

mountain mustache

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #42 on: July 18, 2020, 03:58:32 PM »

What unique things have some of you stocked up on?

I am stocking up on chocolate big time for the Fall/Winter. That was a very random thing that I could not find ANYWHERE for months in the Spring. My mom actually mailed me chocolate chips because she keeps like a dozen bags on hand at any one time. I don't eat a lot of chocolate, but I like to have a piece or two every day...it's like my one treat. So now I will have a dozen of my favorite bars on hand (Alter Eco) and a few bags of chocolate chips as well.

MilesTeg

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #43 on: July 18, 2020, 04:01:09 PM »
We've gone from keeping 3-4 weeks of non perishables on hand to 2-3 months. Now that TP and other paper products are available we've been probably 'hording' them. About 8-12 months worth on hand, but we avoid using paper towels as much as possible and there's only 2 if us so it's really not all that much.

Buffaloski Boris

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #44 on: July 18, 2020, 04:33:23 PM »
I think we should ask the folks in say Detroit who encountered stripped shelves in their stores for weeks on end how much of a supply of staples at home would be “prudence” versus hoarding.

centwise

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #45 on: July 18, 2020, 04:44:43 PM »
I think we should ask the folks in say Detroit who encountered stripped shelves in their stores for weeks on end how much of a supply of staples at home would be “prudence” versus hoarding.

Well this sort of thing feeds on itself, of course. If people perceive that a shortage is starting, then they all run out and buy as much of that thing as they can, because they are afraid they won't be able to find it later. So fear of the shortage causes a drastic shortage.

But those of us in this thread who prudently ALREADY had well-stocked pantries at the beginning of the crisis neither suffered from, nor contributed to, the shortages. And now that the shortages are a thing of the past in most places, it would be prudent to slowly build up your pantry while availability is good, so that you won't contribute to future panic-buying when the next round of shortages (if any) rolls around.

GuitarStv

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #46 on: July 18, 2020, 04:53:33 PM »
A couple weeks sure, but is keeping multiple months of food normally a prudent thing to do?  It has never been necessary in my life prior to covid, so wasn't really something I had ever seriously considered.

StarBright

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #47 on: July 18, 2020, 05:06:02 PM »
I've gone from keeping no extra non-perishables to keeping a couple weeks' worth.

I still am not sure what the line is between reasonable and hoarding. I did get more toilet paper at costco a few weeks ago even though we weren't completely out yet. But the rising covid cases has me being careful.

I haven't been able to find any wipes or lysol since this thing began. I will definitely buy at least two containers if I ever come across them.


centwise

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #48 on: July 18, 2020, 05:17:21 PM »
A couple weeks sure, but is keeping multiple months of food normally a prudent thing to do?  It has never been necessary in my life prior to covid, so wasn't really something I had ever seriously considered.

Keeping multiple months of basics is completely normal for me. It's much cheaper to buy in bulk and on sale. I have room for it, but to be honest, it doesn't even take up that much space. And more importantly, it simplifies my life enormously if I only have to buy certain items 2-3 times/ year. That would include rice, flour, sugar, dried beans, jam, canned goods, as well as TP and cleaning supplies. If meat is on sale then I stock up on that too.

It means that I don't have to think about those things AT ALL during my regular small shopping trips for fresh items. It makes regular shopping simple and fun. I never have to rack my brain to remember to pick up TP or a jar of jam because I know I already have those things.

GuitarStv

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Re: Pandemic hoarding
« Reply #49 on: July 18, 2020, 05:31:06 PM »
A couple weeks sure, but is keeping multiple months of food normally a prudent thing to do?  It has never been necessary in my life prior to covid, so wasn't really something I had ever seriously considered.

Keeping multiple months of basics is completely normal for me. It's much cheaper to buy in bulk and on sale. I have room for it, but to be honest, it doesn't even take up that much space. And more importantly, it simplifies my life enormously if I only have to buy certain items 2-3 times/ year. That would include rice, flour, sugar, dried beans, jam, canned goods, as well as TP and cleaning supplies. If meat is on sale then I stock up on that too.

It means that I don't have to think about those things AT ALL during my regular small shopping trips for fresh items. It makes regular shopping simple and fun. I never have to rack my brain to remember to pick up TP or a jar of jam because I know I already have those things.

None of that was something I've ever had to spend time thinking about either though.  If we were cooking/eating and saw that something was running low, we just write it down on the grocery list that's on a magnet on the fridge.  Same if TP or any other thing was running out.  I never had to rack my brain for anything, it just went on the list.  When you're keeping vast quantities of perishables, you've got to make sure it's not going bad.  Flour goes bad in a couple years, canned stuff goes bad, oats go off in flavour after 6-8 months, etc.  Seems like much more of a pain in the ass way to have to live.

 

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