Food stocks

I have quite a comprehensive tin/dried foods store cupboard. My freezer is full but isn't really very big. I live in a village that has been known to get snowed in and, as I can't leave the house on my own, it means that we always have food if DH is too ill to go shopping with me.

I always have a very well stocked larder and I am fortunate to have the space. Plenty of lentils, rice, beans etc., plus spices. Freezer is quite small and generally used for frozen veg and a few bits of fish, otherwise it is a weekly fridge shop plus a visit to local greengrocer weekly. Top up at local shop if I run out or fancy anything that I don't have in the house. Always have a couple of spares of detergent and washing up liquid, always a good stash of loo rolls. My fridge gets a good quick wipe before I go shopping. But, really, we all do it however it suits us and no one way is wrong or right.

I reckon we have about 6months worth of food in our freezers and cupboards.DH can't resist a bargain.

Those "kettle packs" are a sobering thought @Calistemon Poor, poor families! Poor underbourished kids and adults! I hope the food charities that give them those kettle packs can make sure they get fresh fruit and some protiens.

We just don't know these things are happening until someone points it out, do we. I saw on Facebook that in our city, there is a place that will give a free hot meal to anyone (no questions asked) In the photos were adults and kids queuing round the block to get fed. It was so sad that they needed it, but so good that our council is doing this.

I know you weren’t, Callistemon. ? Sainsbury’s have a similar scheme.

I wasn't trying to preach, just making a helpful suggestion about something I'd found out recently.

I started one with what I thought were a couple of suggestions but no responses!

I've just had to order more toilet rolls as we got through our 'Brexit stash'.
It wasn't me who caused the shortage as I bought a few extra each shop last November and December!

Callistemon

Should that be another thread, do you think, WOODMOUSE?

Probably. The OP asked about our habits re the stocking up of food, and that’s what I responded to.

I don’t need educating about food poverty, and am not going to start virtue signalling by talking about what I give to charity.

That’s a different topic altogether.

I also defrost my freezers by taking everything out and stacking it together under towels or whatever I have to hand. The inside one has drawers and is quite quick and easy to do.

Should that be another thread, do you think, WOODMOUSE?

I just found out how to donate Tesco supermarket vouchers to the Trussell Trust if you're unable to shop in store and donate that way.

secure.tesco.com/clubcard/trussell-trust/UK-010021.prd

I presume other supermarkets may run a similar scheme.

Maggiemaybe

We’re all different, so no rights or wrongs. There’s no need for it in our country, but I personally feel happier with well-stocked cupboards, and a good back up of tinned and packet goods “just in case”. When the worries of the first lockdown and difficulty in getting shopping slots hit, I did a stock check and felt better for knowing we could eat well for at least three weeks, and survive a lot longer. I really do appreciate how lucky we are to have the choice of stocking up if we want to. I think I started doing it when the Government’s Protect and Survive leaflets hit the doormat when my children were babies. I still have a good stock of candle and matches from that time as well.

I can empty, defrost and clean a freezer in about an hour. I don’t need to run it down first. Is that unusual?

I do appreciate the sentiment behind your comment Maggiemaybe and yes you are lucky that you have the choice of stocking up but not everyone has the choice.

Some do not have the money to have a well stocked cupboard for weeks.

The Trussell Trust’s new analysis shows a 61% increase in food parcels needed across its UK network in October to December – six parcels given out every minute. During the start of the pandemic around half of people who used a food bank had never needed one before. Families with children have been hardest hit.
The Trussell Trust support over 2000+ food bank centres across the UK.

I like to think that when people are stocking up they drop just one thing in the food bank box at the supermarket.

It's good to read about the candles. We too do this.

No, I used to pile the food together, cover the food with a blanket, put roasting tins of boiling water in the bottom of the freezer, defrost, clean, turn it back on to freeze and then put the food back in.

We're probably not supposed to do that, but this was a large chest freezer, nothing defrosted and we were all ok,

We’re all different, so no rights or wrongs. There’s no need for it in our country, but I personally feel happier with well-stocked cupboards, and a good back up of tinned and packet goods “just in case”. When the worries of the first lockdown and difficulty in getting shopping slots hit, I did a stock check and felt better for knowing we could eat well for at least three weeks, and survive a lot longer. I really do appreciate how lucky we are to have the choice of stocking up if we want to. I think I started doing it when the Government’s Protect and Survive leaflets hit the doormat when my children were babies. I still have a good stock of candle and matches from that time as well.

I can empty, defrost and clean a freezer in about an hour. I don’t need to run it down first. Is that unusual?

Everybody runs their lives the way that suits them, whether planning shopping, cleaning or whether you iron everything. No system is wrong or right, good or bad. Every system will have someone who criticises it for some reason or an other

Personally, I have always gone for the big monthly shop; topping up my stocks of everything; food, cleaning maerials etc etc and a weekly shop for perishables and one offs. I have a large chest freezer which needs to be kept full to run efficiently.

I do not consciously plan for Armegeddon, just try to keep time spent shopping to a minimum, but at the same time, while I shop to a meal plan, my shopping is guided by a commitment to environmental principles and I try to both 'think global , act local' and this means using local shops: butcher, baker, farm shop, local market. Once again to save time I buy in bulk; 4 loaves, 6 months supply of meat etc.

It’s easy if you have a freezer with drawers I’ve discovered Hetty58. I got a new one a few months ago, and it’s frost free, so you just move stuff that needs eating soon into one drawer, and you can clean the drawers out individually as you go, it’s such an improvement on my old one.
I always keep enough food in at the moment for two weeks, including animal food, frozen milk and bread just in case we are forced to self isolate as I don’t want the hassle of needing anything in those circumstances.

I have three freezers - large, medium and small. They are all packed, most of the time. The fridge contents reduce during the week. I also have what I call my domesday stash - Brexit and pandemic - pasta, tins, frozen fruit and vegetables. Wearing my Oxford University administrator hat, I keep a detailed record of what is in the freezers. This is updated each Monday after I have been shopping.

I can't understand how people can have such large stores in fridges and freezers - when they need a regular clean. I have two freezers so have to run one down.

Always well stocked, country village living when young showed the value of being able to live without the shops My Nan always had a good store cupboard under her stairs.
Even though we have easier access to everything now I still like to know I have all I need for a couple weeks at least.
Never run the small chest freezer down, more economical to have stuff in it and not be keeping air cold.

I think what you do is fine OP but I don't run the freezer down.

I run my fridge down ready for the delivery on a Tuesday. That is when we always did our main shop pre covid. This time of year I make soup with any left over veg, bacon, etc. I will do that today and give the fridge a clean. So I will have the soup, cheese, butter/spread, a couple of yogurts, half a bottle of milk, my sourdough starter, and sauces/chutney in the fridge. It's never really empty.

We bought a new freezer this year with drawers because I was fed up of struggling to find stuff and rotate what was in the chest freezer. We did intend to stop using the large chest freezer but that's not happened. It's in the garage full of stuff but at least its all fresh and in some sort of order.

Tinned and dried stuff. We have a couple of months supply. Adult DC know I usually have extra so I am keeping them supplied. In return they do the occasional Aldi shop for us. I did run out off flour and pasta early on in lock down and I am trying not to let that happen again. I have UHT milk but no bottled water.

I do buy extra and give to our local food bank. I remember struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads in the 1980s.

Always well stocked cupboards etc here and not just food. I hate the dark cold months, so I start around September and every week for a month I buy extra cleaning materials to last me through to March - large bottles of Fairy Liquid, dishwasher tablets, washing machine liquid etc.
Then with extra food in the freezer and overspill cupboards - I only need a quick top up with fresh stuff once a week and we work our way through our ‘stock’ ready for the lighter days.

WOODMOUSE49 I buy things that I use when they are on offer too. I can have several boxes of soap powder, tins of beans or coffee under chairs in the kitchen. I usually have good stocks of flour, pasta, rice etc in my cupboards and am constantly providing family with what they don't have when they start cooking. In the last few weeks that has included corn flour, brown sugar, vanilla essence and frozen chicken breasts! They all live locally luckily for them!

I only do an online shop fortnightly now that I am on my own without grandchildren to pick up and feed on an almost daily basis. Has anybody noticed sliced bread is lasting a lot longer since Covid? I realised in the past that the sell buy dates seemed to be a lot longer around Christmas so I suspect they're adding something. My last loaf lasted 3 weeks without going stale or mouldy!

Doodledog, be mindful of your bottled water. I know in America that they recommend changing it out every year or so I think

I have a weekly food delivery topped up with bread and milk as required, and in normal times we also do a Costco run every 3 months or so. The fridge and freezer are full, and I have a large pantry with staples such as pasta, rice tins and herbs and spices.

We could go for months if necessary, although we'd be eating some unusual combinations of food. I have always been the same - I get anxious if I don't have plenty of supplies - but I topped up in anticipation of the pre-extension Brexit, and still have a lot of that stashed away, alongside a primus and bottled water in case of power cuts.

I bought a lot of 'camping food' that won't go off, such as soup mix and tinned fruit, in case Brexit causes shortages of fresh food. The plan was to see how things went and donate anything we didn't use to the foodbank, but things didn't work out that way, what with Brexit not happening, and Covid meaning that I can't get out to the food bank to donate.

I do as you do.

We don't have any storage space for more than a couple of weeks worth of 'not fresh' food or household items. Found it difficult with lockdown on line orders as I could only get delivery dates once every three weeks.

Only extras I buy are when something we have regularly is on offer eg coffee recently. I bought 6 jars. It is normally £4 a jar but offer was £2.50. That's now on the floor in a shopping bag until there's room on the shelf.

Any left overs are lunch the next day.