There has been so much talk about food prices rising, supermarkets gouging the consumer and possible shortages due to the extreme weather around the world, I have found myself starting to hoard food. I first noticed myself doing this when after noticing prices going up at a vast rate.
My regular readers know that I love Lidl and make a trip there weekly. About a month ago, I noticed 10p rises on two of the items I purchase regularly, rocket and goats cheese. Okay, so 10p is not that much but if you multiply it against ten items that is £2, not really that small a sum. This immediately made me nervous, was my food budget going to go to hell in a handbasket?
I then read that because the Chinese have adapted a more Western diet (hello MacDonalds) that the price of beef and wheat could go up quite sharply. The other factor in wheat’s price rise is apparently the wheat stocks in Russia are dwindling.
All this gloom and doom put me in slight panic mode. I found myself adding extra ground beef and pasta to my usual Tesco delivery when it was on special offer. Now I have a lot of beef in the freezer and pasta in the cupboard so I think we may be eating pasta Bolognese more than once in a while.
I must say I feel more secure when I have full cupboards. I love it that I can whip up a meal without having to hit the shops. I know these unplanned off the hoof meals most likely will not have a lot of fresh vegetables but they are still pretty good. There is so much you can make with a can of tomatoes, pasta, maybe some type of bean.
I am getting a bit concerned that I am taking this stocking up to the extreme. It can be embaressing when you open a cupboard and bags of fusilli fall out. I also stock up on more than just food, I grab quantities of toilet paper and shampoo when they are on sale. My thinking is they are two things that you will always need and it is better to have a bargain then to miss a bargain.
Have you been reacting to increasing inflation by purchasing more than usual? Are you buying specific items, just in case? Please leave me a comment, it would make me feel better not to be the only paranoid consumer.
I stock up on loo paper, cans of tomatoes and weirdly, jars of capers if they are on sale! A good read and I don’t think you’re hoarding,just being thrifty!
So long as you are not buying things that are going down in value, I do not see a problem.
Related to this subject you might also like my recent blog on Extreme Couponing http://www.johnnydebt.co.uk/debt/extreme-couponing/ if you think you are hoarding take a look at what some people are stashing away in their house.
I’ve been a bir freaked by the rising prices too. I don’t have a lot of storage room so I’ve been trying to run down my supplies of odd stuff (that I’m not sure why I ever bought) and am slowly replacing with any bulk buy bargains I find. I’ve just managed to cut my food spending back a bit but I’ve had to put a LOT more effort in to manage it. I’d say if you’ve got room to store it – buy it!!
Stocking up is hoarding with a plan! Having a food cupboard is a good idea (and one that saves a lot of money) anyway. We have one – after I published some posts about the firthcoming economic meltdown (well, lads think the worst is behind us but…I think we are still not passed it; in fact it has hardly begun). Anyway, the articles are on my blog for anyone interested – including a manual for building a food cupboard.
Hi Maria, I love the idea of building a store cupboard. My sister who lives in the suburbs has one in her basement and I must say I find it comforting to see all that food. We live in a flat that doesn’t have enough room for a lot of bulk buying which costs us in the long run.
Viviana, ours is shlves in a corner of a side room. More than enough though – and it is true, looking at stores of food makes you snap out of the ‘poverty’ mind set and see abundance. Check this link
Great post Viviana!
As a general rule I bulk buy the expensive stuff when it is on sale, toilet rolls, washing powder, bleach etc.
So I’m really concious of the fact that if I start on food stock I will eventually become a crazed hoarder, so instead I have taken to bulk making meals and freezing them. I’m hoping to fill up the freezer so that when the prices go up I will be covered for a good few months without my budget incurring too much damage! Plus it will cover me for most of the winter. (Good tip: Freezer bags take up less room than tupperware boxes)
Hi Rachael, thanks for commenting. I also stock up on toilet roll, cleaning products and when Boots does 3 for 2, my favourite soap.
I am getting ready to do a bulk shop, cook and freeze in the next few weeks. I love the idea of making my own ready meals.
Boots are great for their 3 for 2 offers, especially at Christmas! Plus if you have been accumulating points on your Boots card then Christmas pretty much pays for itself!
Good luck with your freezer meals 🙂
I think storing some excess non-perishable/long shelf life food is a smart idea, I see it as part of an emergency fund.