The grocery store inventory seems to vary quite a bit from one area to another. I’ve heard people say they couldn’t find this and someone else says there’s plenty in there area and I’ve heard that off on and on for the past few months. There were a few times that going in the grocery store here kinda made me catch my breath. Certain items were just not there. Once I went and the entire pasta section was very close to empty. No elbow macaroni, no spaghetti, no lasagna – it was all pretty much gone. Once I saw very little canned tomato products.
I generally go in with a list and I get what’s on my list and I don’t pay much attention to anything else but I’ve been noticing . . not really checking everything but big, empty spaces made me notice.
Vince and I were in Walmart last week and I honestly looked for empty spaces and saw none. The shelves seemed fully stocked and it wasn’t just a few cans in the front . . they seemed to be really stocked.
Today while we were out, we stopped by Food 4 Less and I don’t think I’ve ever seen that store so well stocked.
For the most part, the prices were much higher than they were a year ago but at least there’s food on the shelves. If saving money is important, then we have to know the prices. Example: At Aldi, a 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes is .95. At Walmart, the Great Value brand is .88 for the same size can. Today at Food 4 Less, the same size can was .67. We grabbed a case (24 cans) and that was a $5.04 savings over the Walmart price. I know how many cans I have here and what I try to do is keep “x” number of cases of diced tomatoes and then replace the cases as I empty a case. I could have purchased three or four cases because of the savings. There were stacks and stacks of cases of these tomatoes but I simply didn’t need more than one case.
I think I mentioned already that lemons were .10 each, which is a good price these days, at least here. A bag of lemons about the size of the ones at Food 4 Less is $3.92 and there are usually about 8 lemons in the bag. That makes each lemon .49. Lemonade is something we drink a lot around here. I bought a lot of lemons at .10 each, will juice them, add sugar to about 2/3 of the juice and can it as a concentrate for making lemonade. I’ll can the rest without sugar and can use that in cooking or if Vince wants unsweetened tea with lemon. We use the Soda Stream and make the lemonade with fizzy water and it’s so good, especially in the summer.
It was nice to see shelves fully stocked and it was nice to see enough items that were either the same price that I’m used to paying or just a little more so that I could forget about the items that were quite a bit more expensive.
Sue Edberg says
I was at the grocery store the other day in my neighbor (Fry’s, a Kroger store) and many of the shelves were empty or near empty. Several of the items I use on a regular basis just weren’t there. The meat and chicken areas were really low – not empty but not very well stocked. Yesterday the fresh vegetables were stocked but that isn’t how it usually is. I find it frustrating to go shopping because I have to go from store to store to get what I need. I am trying to keep somewhat stocked but I don’t have room to keep a lot of cans. My pantry is rather small and many times I have to go shopping several times a week to get what I need. The other grocery store is an Albertson’s and we do have a Walmart but that is 11 miles away. Fry’s is in negotiations with Albertson’s to merge. That is really going to limit my choices. We don’t have an Aldi near us – I think it is about 25 miles away.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
It is so frustrating to have to go from store to store to get what you need. Except for a very few things, I’ve gotten to where I’ll just buy what I see and figure out how to make do with what I was able to get. It’s made for some pretty interesting meals. I hope seeing our shelves fully stocked is going to be the norm and not just a fluke and I hope soon, the stocked shelves will start happening in your area.
Anhgie says
Lemons here in NC range from 50 cents to $1.00 each depending on if they are on sale or not. My question i# how do you can lemon juice? I’m not a canner but find your canner blogs interesting.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
How about I write a post about it when I do it (hopefully tomorrow – Friday)?
Elle says
I had my very first experience of something on my shopping list being unavailable. It was 3 weeks ago. Celery! None to be had in any form. I had to chuckle.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
Isn’t it weird how it’s always a mystery what will be missing?
Joyce says
Lately I have had a hard time finding the contact cleaning solution I use. I prefer the name brand, because I have lots of eye issues. Right now even the store brand is hard to find. I’m hoping it is back in stock by the time I need to buy it again.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
Oh, goodness. I haven’t had a hard time finding anything that we truly need. That’s terrible to not be able to find the contact cleaning solution. Vince uses distilled water in his Cpap and that is hard to find now. Walmart had some last week and Vince bought three gallons. When we were back this week, it was all gone.
Cindy F says
Yesterday I did some grocery shopping at the military commissary and they had absolutely no fresh chicken! There was a note up about an issue with their distributor. And….the distilled water was out again. Good thing I didn’t have to have either item right away! I did notice the price of some items running high but I expect that these days. Luckily I have 3 other grocery stores that I can shop when someone doesn’t have something but what I usually do is just change what my plan was unless it’s a needed item. I buy specific items from certain stores so I have to go to each one periodically. Seems like since the pandemic started I never do all my primary shopping in one place any more. But, it’s not the old Soviet era style of shopping so I really can’t complain. 🙂
patti says
i’m in a small -but growing quickly- town with one grocery store. a 30 minute drive takes us to the big city with lots more choices so we’re pretty lucky. being in the northwest, with snow in the winter, no citrus will grow locally, so i pay from a good sale price of $.69 to $.99 apiece. a costco bag is more cost-saving but i have to plan for using a whole bag full. my freezer has lemon pucks for either lemonade or putting in iced tea. some zest is also stored for future use.
Ginny says
Here in Connecticut fresh lemons run between $.99 to $1.29. I am careful when I buy one to make sure it is used. I love Lemon Chicken.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
Most places here, they aren’t .10. We were lucky to happen across that sale. I think loose lemons at Walmart are .69 each.
Susan says
I’ve quit looking, honestly. It’s never the same twice. Maybe because we have a competitive market with several chains, plus Walmart, Aldi and Food For Less. If it’s too expensive where I am, I don’t buy it. There will be something else I can eat. I also have certain brands that I don’t care about the price, I only buy that brand of that item. Grocery shopping is certainly different from when I was a young mother!
judy.blog@gmail.com says
That’s pretty much how I’m handling it. Forget the exact requirements of a recipe and use what I have!