Supermarkets Are Stockpiling Inventory as Food Costs Rise

[JonDouglas]

From the WSJ:

Supermarkets are stocking up on everything from sugar to frozen meat before they get more pricey, girding for what some executives anticipate will be some of the highest price increases in recent memory.​

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Some supermarkets said they are buying and storing supplies to keep their shelves full amid stronger demand. Grocery sales in the U.S. for the week ended June 19 rose about 15% from two years earlier and increased 0.5% from a year earlier, according to Jefferies and NielsenIQ data.​

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Stockpiling by food retailers is driving shortages of some staples, grocery industry executives said, and is challenging a U.S. food supply chain already squeezed by transportation costs, labor pressure and ingredient constraints.​

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More at source (paywall)​

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Something to be aware of - yet another, longer term result of the lockdown insanity. Forewarned is forearmed.

 

[fmdog44]

I saw this on the news and I wondered why I can't find things now.

 

[Marie5656]

Darn..there goes the toilet paper again. Glad my freezer and pantry is stocked

 

[hollydolly]

As far as i can help it I will not find myself in the same situation as we had here 16 months ago, with no food, no TP.. no meds.. and all the other shortages that we had here for weeks or months , ever again.

I don't care if anyone calls it hoarding.. it's prudent now knowing what can happen as suddenly as it did to us all over a year ago.. with some people unable to even buy baby food... or Sanitary goods.. and soap..

.. so I will keep my larders and freezers stocked up to the best of my ability ..also given that I live in a rural area.. too

 

[SmoothSeas]

*shakes head in amazement*

just another example of the global effects of this pandemic.

It's done run havoc on the world as we know it - what's next...?

 

[Don M.]

This pandemic has caused more people to eat at home, and not go to the restaurants....if they can find one still open. Couple that with food processing plants running at minimal capacity, and it's easy to understand prices going up. Bottom line....most people will probably find their overall expenses rising at least 5 or 6 percent...and maybe more...for the foreseeable future.

 

[Devi]

We almost always eat at home, where we can control the ingredients — mainly organic and natural.

 

[JonDouglas]

I figure if push comes to shove, we can start growing things and harvest some critters out back. It's what my grandparents had to do during the great depression and WWII.

 

[Pink Biz]

Right on, Scarlet O'Hara!

 

[hollydolly]

I figure if push comes to shove, we can start growing things and harvest some critters out back. It's what my grandparents had to do during the great depression and WWII.

well we've done that even in our lifetime..shooting game birds , and rabbits years ago.. and growing our own vegetables...

 

[Jeweltea]

I noticed several items I couldn't get this week at the grocery store. It wasn't that they were totally out of the item, just the particular flavors I wanted (like ice cream and coffee creamer).

 

[fuzzybuddy]

This pandemic has caused more people to eat at home, and not go to the restaurants....if they can find one still open. Couple that with food processing plants running at minimal capacity, and it's easy to understand prices going up. Bottom line....most people will probably find their overall expenses rising at least 5 or 6 percent...and maybe more...for the foreseeable future.

Don M is correct. Covid caused a huge shift in where people got fed. Restaurants had been increasingly the place where many ate at least one meal/day. So restaurants developed their produce supplier channels. When restaurants were closed, those channels were also closed, and that put enormous pressure on local supermarkets to meet the increased demand. And the supermarket suppliers could not meet that immediate demand-thus shortages. For a long time, there has been no movement to increase the federal minimum wage, it's just a matter of time for it to be readjusted, and with that there will be e period of inflation. We live in a supply and demand society, it's inevitable that when there's a demand the price will rise. Also, food store chains tend to stockpile, they get a much better price /discounts for larger orders.

 

[OneEyedDiva]

I have been stocking up on things, mostly because 1. I buy many items in bulk from Costco wholesale and 2. I take advantage of good sales on desired items (many non perishables) at my local supermarket. Ironically, so far this year I'm spending about $25 less per month on food than last year. It became horrifying last year when even Costco was out of their own brand of toilet paper (my preferred brand) for six months. I hope to never go through that again. Most other brands just don't cut it for me...Scott being the worst (well 2nd worst next to Marcal which I'd never buy).

I remember seeing signs a couple of times last year in our local market that said certain items were out of stock or may soon be. One time it was frozen vegetables, the other ice cream. I don't buy red meat and not much poultry either so I'll see if I notice a big hike in my grocery bill. It'll be interesting to see if there are noticeable differences in Costco pricing because their prices are usually stable and are sometimes even lowered.

 

[Sunny]

Even Costco was out of sanitation wipes (Lysol and Clorox) for about a year! They finally got them again.