I still find Costco, Amazon, and TJs to be worth going to for things I buy regularly. Definitely wouldn't describe the situation as them always being out of stock of everything.

I think we're all noticing the disruptions in the supply chain for various items that we routinely buy. Availability is patchy no matter where you shop, and for lots of items. And the shortages are changing over time.

Our local mainstream stores are having the same supply problems as Costco and TJs. The shelves at the Kroger-owned chain are more likely to be empty than Costco's are. But they had really lousy inventory management before the pandemic, so I guess it's not surprising that it's only gotten worse.

I've had somewhat better luck at the independent grocers, but really sought-after items are simply not available anywhere. Sometimes you just have to come back another time or make do with something else.

I view shopping these days as a bit of a scavenger hunt. It's just a challenge!

quote:

well-temperedforum.groupee.net    The Well-Tempered Forum    Off Key    About that meat shortage

I've got my routines pretty down pat. I know where I can get certain things, and where I am likely to get stiffed. It's a little extra effort but time is not an issue lately. Local, Kroger and Whole Foods.

But I got Jalapeno CHEETOS yesterday!!! Oh happy day.

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But I got Jalapeno CHEETOS yesterday!!! Oh happy day .

A man who knows what his priorities are.

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Originally posted by Steve Miller:
May I ask a question?

I keep reading about people who insist on going to Costco, Amazon, and Trader Joe’s when they are always out of stock of everything. Why?

Is there some reason why you prefer to trade at stores where they don’t have stock? Why not favor mainstream grocery stores where they have things for sale on the shelves?

Steve,

I'll give you my answer... for me Costco is actually a matter of convenience. There are some things I buy every week (or now, I'm trying to go no more frequently than every 11 days or so). I get my veggies and some other staples like bread, cheese, milk, and eggs there. Only things that I can use a Costco-quantity of before they go bad.

We have nearly no locally-owned neighborhood grocery stores. Kroger owns two of the big chains - QFC and Fred Meyer - then there's Safeway and Walmurt (I do not go to Walmurt), and I have found since early March that they are generally out of the same stuff. I'm not up for chasing around among several stores to find something like a bag of flour. Donning and doffing the face mask and washing my hands after each stop is a pain.

I don't patronize Amazon anymore. I used to go to TJs for one or two specific things (like chevre when there was a border collie in my house), but I cannot remember the last time I was in one. Oh, wait, yes, I do. It was one or two springs ago to see if they once again had Holy Land brand matzo. They did not.

About half the time since early March I've gone to one of the smaller neighborhood QFC stores. They are less crazy and a little less picked-over than the big ones. About half the time I've gone to the nearest big one because it is next to the drug store where my family and I get our prescriptions (I have too many problems with mis-delivered mail, so I don't use mail-order pharmacy).

The only locally-owned store I can think of - and even it is a small chain of four or five stores - is Uwajimaya which is an Asian grocery. Aside from a run on rice in March, they are pretty well stocked, but have a very limited selection of non-Asian products. Oh, and there's also a chain here called H-Mart which is another Asian store. The only other non-chain stores are very small, and like Uwajimaya, mostly carry Asian, Mexican, or Middle-Eastern stuff. I would give them my business if they met all my needs. Unfortunately, they don't. The chains have killed off nearly all of the mom 'n' pop stores. Some other local chains have just died off.


So, my typical run for provisions is Costco for the majority of stuff, then a QFC for whatever Costco didn't have or doesn't carry (like vegetarian chili) and anything I don't need in Costco quantities. I will see if QFC has frozen chicken breasts. Costco has been out of them for two weeks now.


When Costco was out of TP, so were all the grocery stores.

You buy good goat cheese for your dog?

Bet they really loved pate'.

TJs had a very reasonably-priced chevre. The border collie would eat *anything* if it was hidden in a ball of chevre. It was the infallible way to get him to take a pill.

He went absolutely nuts for lamb, but he was allergic to it. And wool. A sheep-herding dog allergic to sheep. Go figger.

That may well have been naturally selected for in a sheepdog.

My cat Chloe LOVES lamb. Rack of lamb was what sealed the deal when she decided we were going to adopt her.

I get the 3 local large food store ads weekly.

NONE are advertising pork or chicken in any form

Since I can't go to the store being in a small town with 19 more cases just yesterday, being susceptible, it is even hard to ask anyone going for either to stock my freezer again.

Thankfully I did just find a local farmstand for romaine, carrots etc which I will get hopefully tomorrow (put my request in for fr pickup)

We have three grocery stores in town (Walmart and two regional chains, one bigger than the other). Costco, TJs, Whole Foods etc are all in other towns, so we don't go to any of them.

When Mr. SK goes shopping he tends to go to Walmart and one of the others, so he makes two stops before coming home. Since we got cloth masks, he puts the mask on before going into the first store and then doesn't touch it or take it off until he gets home. He uses hand sanitizers before getting into the car after each stop, and of course washes hands as soon as he gets home and takes of the mask.

If he can't find something at either store, he gives up. For food stuffs, there's always alternatives. For items for which there are not alternatives, usually all stores are out. TP being a case in point. When we were getting worried about running out of TP, he would check all three stores but whenever one store was out of TP, all of them were. When the miracle day came when we got TP, he went to two stores and both stores had some on the shelves (a limited amount, but not totally empty).

Oh, and TP is still never on the shelves here in any quantity. Once meat disappears, I expect it will be gone for a long time. Sigh.

If we get to the point where we're really desperate for something, we'll decide how many additional stores to go to. But we haven't gotten to that point yet. Fingers crossed!

Find a local farm CSA if you can. More expensive, but reliable and better meat. Plus a lot of them are hurting from lack of restaurant business.

It will be interesting to see how we do for meat here in Butte. Several stores sell local meat, wondering if they will be fine or not. So far the only thing that seems difficult to find is hand sanitizer and wipes. All the grocery stores are limiting the number of hard to stock items (including meat) that you can purchase at one time. Slightly off topic - I never paid attention to how long our toilet paper lasted before, but Scott’s toilet paper lasts forever. I bought one large package of it before this all started (end of February) and we still have tons left.

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Originally posted by Mikhailoh:
Find a local farm CSA if you can. More expensive, but reliable and better meat. Plus a lot of them are hurting from lack of restaurant business.

We get weekly veggies and eggs from a CSA, and we've gotten some meat from another farm. We also have a stash of things like canned tuna, frozen fish, and such.

We'll be okay on the short- to medium-term, even if some things become impossible to get. If there are protracted food shortages, we'll have a lot of things to worry about. For example, will our loved ones in more populated areas be able to get food?

I suspect we'll have less difficulty in a low-density, high-agriculture area than people in other parts of the country will.

What is a CSA?

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Originally posted by pianojuggler:

He went absolutely nuts for lamb, but he was allergic to it. And wool. A sheep-herding dog allergic to sheep. Go figger.

quote:

Originally posted by pianojuggler:
What is a CSA?

Tucson CSA