Stocking the cupboards in the event of a pandemic in the USA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm so terrible at this. I've stocked up on every toddler snack I could imagine might be useful, but am stuck on what to get for regular meals. I don't typically cook every meal every day so I'm now trying to figure out how to keep everyone fed with a minimum of fuss. Breakfasts are covered, but otherwise, my brain is frozen.

If you have a Trader Joe’s nearby go grab frozen veggies - the stir fry mixes, straight veggies, gnocchis, some prepared frozen meals like lasagna or stuffed shells, Indian food, etc.

When you do cook, double batch it and eat it twice that week.

[Anonymous]

I haven’t read every bit of this, but here’s my prep:

Extra TP, sanitizer, hand soap, etc.
I use a diva cup so feminine hygiene is covered indefinitely.
I keep 3 gallons of water per person on hand anyway for hurricanes, etc.

For food, I have a lot of stuff on hand anyway. I order freeze-dried fruits and veggies all the time from a company called thrive life. My kids will eat “crunchy” (freeze-dried) green beans, peas, corn, apples, peaches and every type of berry. I buy it in big #10 cans and they last for like 20 years unopened, and a year after opening. It’s great to have a healthy, shelf-stable snack for the kids that I can easily throw into a lunch box or snack container. They sell powdered milk and eggs too but we honestly don’t drink that much milk so we wouldn’t bother trying to overlook the powdered taste. I just keep some shelf-stable nut milk since that works fine for baking and some ground flaxseed in case I need eggs for baking.

I made sure we had applejuice, applesauce and crackers since that’s what my kids like when they are sick so if they do get CoVID-19 and feel yucky we have their preferred “I feel yucky” food. I bought some extra pasta and canned tuna and flour so I can bake bread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read every bit of this, but here’s my prep:

Extra TP, sanitizer, hand soap, etc.
I use a diva cup so feminine hygiene is covered indefinitely.
I keep 3 gallons of water per person on hand anyway for hurricanes, etc.

For food, I have a lot of stuff on hand anyway. I order freeze-dried fruits and veggies all the time from a company called thrive life. My kids will eat “crunchy” (freeze-dried) green beans, peas, corn, apples, peaches and every type of berry. I buy it in big #10 cans and they last for like 20 years unopened, and a year after opening. It’s great to have a healthy, shelf-stable snack for the kids that I can easily throw into a lunch box or snack container. They sell powdered milk and eggs too but we honestly don’t drink that much milk so we wouldn’t bother trying to overlook the powdered taste. I just keep some shelf-stable nut milk since that works fine for baking and some ground flaxseed in case I need eggs for baking.

I made sure we had applejuice, applesauce and crackers since that’s what my kids like when they are sick so if they do get CoVID-19 and feel yucky we have their preferred “I feel yucky” food. I bought some extra pasta and canned tuna and flour so I can bake bread.

Eff you and everyone else hoarding extra sanitizer. You are only as a safe as the weakest link and many families have zero.

[Anonymous]

What does your shopping schedule look like now? I used to go to a store at least twice per week and eat out once, coffee twice a week.

Now it’s zero coffee and eating out. I send DH to the store in the late evenings every week or so. We are not stockpiling, but we do have a couple extra packs of TP and a few handsoaps, since the handsoap aisle seems so depleted these days.

[Anonymous]

I did my regular weekly shopping at HT last night, and it was absolutely mobbed. I understand stocking up more than normal (I have), but I saw families with four overflowing shopping carts. At a certain point, you have to step back and question the sanity of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read every bit of this, but here’s my prep:

Extra TP, sanitizer, hand soap, etc.
I use a diva cup so feminine hygiene is covered indefinitely.
I keep 3 gallons of water per person on hand anyway for hurricanes, etc.

For food, I have a lot of stuff on hand anyway. I order freeze-dried fruits and veggies all the time from a company called thrive life. My kids will eat “crunchy” (freeze-dried) green beans, peas, corn, apples, peaches and every type of berry. I buy it in big #10 cans and they last for like 20 years unopened, and a year after opening. It’s great to have a healthy, shelf-stable snack for the kids that I can easily throw into a lunch box or snack container. They sell powdered milk and eggs too but we honestly don’t drink that much milk so we wouldn’t bother trying to overlook the powdered taste. I just keep some shelf-stable nut milk since that works fine for baking and some ground flaxseed in case I need eggs for baking.

I made sure we had applejuice, applesauce and crackers since that’s what my kids like when they are sick so if they do get CoVID-19 and feel yucky we have their preferred “I feel yucky” food. I bought some extra pasta and canned tuna and flour so I can bake bread.

Eff you and everyone else hoarding extra sanitizer. You are only as a safe as the weakest link and many families have zero.

+1 if I had extra sanitizer and children, I’d be sending it in to the teacher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read every bit of this, but here’s my prep:

Extra TP, sanitizer, hand soap, etc.
I use a diva cup so feminine hygiene is covered indefinitely.
I keep 3 gallons of water per person on hand anyway for hurricanes, etc.

For food, I have a lot of stuff on hand anyway. I order freeze-dried fruits and veggies all the time from a company called thrive life. My kids will eat “crunchy” (freeze-dried) green beans, peas, corn, apples, peaches and every type of berry. I buy it in big #10 cans and they last for like 20 years unopened, and a year after opening. It’s great to have a healthy, shelf-stable snack for the kids that I can easily throw into a lunch box or snack container. They sell powdered milk and eggs too but we honestly don’t drink that much milk so we wouldn’t bother trying to overlook the powdered taste. I just keep some shelf-stable nut milk since that works fine for baking and some ground flaxseed in case I need eggs for baking.

I made sure we had applejuice, applesauce and crackers since that’s what my kids like when they are sick so if they do get CoVID-19 and feel yucky we have their preferred “I feel yucky” food. I bought some extra pasta and canned tuna and flour so I can bake bread.

Eff you and everyone else hoarding extra sanitizer. You are only as a safe as the weakest link and many families have zero.

+1 if I had extra sanitizer and children, I’d be sending it in to the teacher.

You'd give the teacher your extra children?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I did my regular weekly shopping at HT last night, and it was absolutely mobbed. I understand stocking up more than normal (I have), but I saw families with four overflowing shopping carts. At a certain point, you have to step back and question the sanity of this.

We were told by the CDC weeks ago to prepare. If you paid attention to the news around the world and believed all humans are somewhat equal in the face of nature, you would have come to that conclusion a month earlier. It's insane that families are only starting to prepare now rather than 2 months ago, and even more insane that anyone would still think it's a bad idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read every bit of this, but here’s my prep:

Extra TP, sanitizer, hand soap, etc.
I use a diva cup so feminine hygiene is covered indefinitely.
I keep 3 gallons of water per person on hand anyway for hurricanes, etc.

For food, I have a lot of stuff on hand anyway. I order freeze-dried fruits and veggies all the time from a company called thrive life. My kids will eat “crunchy” (freeze-dried) green beans, peas, corn, apples, peaches and every type of berry. I buy it in big #10 cans and they last for like 20 years unopened, and a year after opening. It’s great to have a healthy, shelf-stable snack for the kids that I can easily throw into a lunch box or snack container. They sell powdered milk and eggs too but we honestly don’t drink that much milk so we wouldn’t bother trying to overlook the powdered taste. I just keep some shelf-stable nut milk since that works fine for baking and some ground flaxseed in case I need eggs for baking.

I made sure we had applejuice, applesauce and crackers since that’s what my kids like when they are sick so if they do get CoVID-19 and feel yucky we have their preferred “I feel yucky” food. I bought some extra pasta and canned tuna and flour so I can bake bread.

Eff you and everyone else hoarding extra sanitizer. You are only as a safe as the weakest link and many families have zero.

?? just use soap?

[Anonymous]

I've been stocking up for over a week now but went to my local Safeway (in Arlington) last night for a last top-off, and it wasn't crazy. It was completely out of toilet paper and soap, but otherwise I found everything I was looking for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I did my regular weekly shopping at HT last night, and it was absolutely mobbed. I understand stocking up more than normal (I have), but I saw families with four overflowing shopping carts. At a certain point, you have to step back and question the sanity of this.

We were told by the CDC weeks ago to prepare. If you paid attention to the news around the world and believed all humans are somewhat equal in the face of nature, you would have come to that conclusion a month earlier. It's insane that families are only starting to prepare now rather than 2 months ago, and even more insane that anyone would still think it's a bad idea.

Are you really that ignorant to not undertstand that many families can only buy essentials each week. They don’t have the ability to “stock up” or really hoard is what you’re doing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read every bit of this, but here’s my prep:

Extra TP, sanitizer, hand soap, etc.
I use a diva cup so feminine hygiene is covered indefinitely.
I keep 3 gallons of water per person on hand anyway for hurricanes, etc.

For food, I have a lot of stuff on hand anyway. I order freeze-dried fruits and veggies all the time from a company called thrive life. My kids will eat “crunchy” (freeze-dried) green beans, peas, corn, apples, peaches and every type of berry. I buy it in big #10 cans and they last for like 20 years unopened, and a year after opening. It’s great to have a healthy, shelf-stable snack for the kids that I can easily throw into a lunch box or snack container. They sell powdered milk and eggs too but we honestly don’t drink that much milk so we wouldn’t bother trying to overlook the powdered taste. I just keep some shelf-stable nut milk since that works fine for baking and some ground flaxseed in case I need eggs for baking.

I made sure we had applejuice, applesauce and crackers since that’s what my kids like when they are sick so if they do get CoVID-19 and feel yucky we have their preferred “I feel yucky” food. I bought some extra pasta and canned tuna and flour so I can bake bread.

Eff you and everyone else hoarding extra sanitizer. You are only as a safe as the weakest link and many families have zero.

Those who stocked up six weeks ago did you a service by not hitting the supply at the same time as everyone, and jolting it just so to stimulate further supply. So shut up with your "eff you's." We ensured that more of you late-to-wake-up sheep had some two weeks ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What does your shopping schedule look like now? I used to go to a store at least twice per week and eat out once, coffee twice a week.

Now it’s zero coffee and eating out. I send DH to the store in the late evenings every week or so. We are not stockpiling, but we do have a couple extra packs of TP and a few handsoaps, since the handsoap aisle seems so depleted these days.

We usually shop for groceries twice a week, and stop by Target once or twice a week as well. We’re pretty well stocked for meals right now, so after today we will not be going to the grocery store unless absolutely necessary. After this weekend we’re not going to take the kids out to “public” places except school. It’s gonna get pretty boring around here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does your shopping schedule look like now? I used to go to a store at least twice per week and eat out once, coffee twice a week.

Now it’s zero coffee and eating out. I send DH to the store in the late evenings every week or so. We are not stockpiling, but we do have a couple extra packs of TP and a few handsoaps, since the handsoap aisle seems so depleted these days.

We usually shop for groceries twice a week, and stop by Target once or twice a week as well. We’re pretty well stocked for meals right now, so after today we will not be going to the grocery store unless absolutely necessary. After this weekend we’re not going to take the kids out to “public” places except school. It’s gonna get pretty boring around here.

Why this weekend? You should start immediately. And why is school ok?

[Anonymous]

i normally shop once on the weekends, and get delivery from SMC once mid-week. I always buy some things in bulk - Costco for dry goods, bulk meat purchases from local farms - so I always have a pretty good stock. I didn't do anything special to stock up, but I already happened to have on hand:
- Costco packs of TP, paper towels, etc
- Extra chest freezer in the basement with a quarter cow's worth of beef, half a pig, 2 deer, and several chickens. There's enough meat to last another 6 months.
- Canned tomato sauce, green beans, corn, several different kinds of fruit
- Frozen fruit and vegetables, probably 8-10 packages

The only thing I did pay extra attention to was getting plenty of hardy, long-lasting fresh fruits and vegetables. Potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, cabbage, beets, apples, oranges will all last several weeks.

We could eat pretty well for about 3-4 weeks, and could survive on the freezer stash for months.