On other threads, recently “Empty Shelves”, we’ve been discussing various states of grocery stores and changes in items we see for sale (seems like more bulk rice and beans, etc.)
I got to wondering if we were just imagining these changes, if they were just seasonal and so on. We don’t seem to have any posters with retail grocery jobs, so I looked on-line for some grocery store industry articles to see if Ic ould see any evidence of preparations grocery stores are doing for a pandemic.
Most publications require a password, but here are a few articles I found from this summer from Progressive Grocery Magazine. I don’t know the publication, but access to the articles is free and I thought some of them might be of interest.
Ohio Food Industry Foundation Gets Grant to Develop Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Guide Progressive Grocer
AUGUST 07, 2006 — COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Food Industry Foundation (OFIF), the educational and philanthropic arm of the Ohio Grocers Association (OGA) here, was recently awarded a grant from the Center of Disease Control (CDC) through the Ohio Department of Health to develop a pandemic influenza preparedness guide for grocers.
(snip)
“The best time for triumph over an emergency is before it happens,” said Tonya Woodruff, director of the Ohio Food Industry Foundation. “When that emergency is an influenza pandemic affecting Ohioans and millions more across America and around the world, planning, and preparation [are] absolutely critical.”
The pandemic influenza preparedness guide will also contain the following: explanations of pandemic influenza, infection control, dealing with customers, formation of a crisis management team, resources for staff to aid in responding to the pandemic influenza, providing consumer information of a Retail Food Establishment (RFE) operation during and after the pandemic influenza, suggested tools for media presentation, and a emergency contact information checklist for use by RFE staff. The information will be incorporated into a business planning checklist, a resource list, a business recovery plan, and other materials as necessary.
(snip)
“The Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Guide for Retail Grocers Guide” will be distributed to all grocers in Ohio some time in September 2006.
During the first Webinar, Dr. Arthur Liang, MD, MPH, associate director of food safety for Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will offer insights and explore strategies to counter the impact of Bird Flu on the fresh produce industry. The department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada will provide an overview of the Canadian perspective and outline the impact of a Bird Flu Pandemic on businesses. This comprehensive Webinar will give attendees the facts straight from credible health authorities and will include discussions of the Bird Flu pandemic’s impact on companies, employees, consumer shopping and dining habits. Participants will also learn how emergency preparations will positively affect the operations of their company.
And finally….
Giant Eagle Preparing for Bird Flu Progressive Grocer
JUNE 23, 2006 — PITTSBURGH — Giant Eagle here shared details of its pandemic flu preparation plan as one of several key participants at a forum on the avian flu and pandemic preparedness this week.
John Saunders, Giant Eagle’s director of computer services and IT procurement, said Giant Eagle will aim to minimize person-to-person contact in its stores by encouraging the use of self-service checkout lines, drive-up pharmacy windows and debit or credit cards rather than cash.
(snip)
In the event of a pandemic threat, the Giant Eagle official said the chain is considering the feasibility of creating an online grocery store that would ship purchased goods to homes via mail or a commercial shipping service. Because a typical Giant Eagle store stocks about 40,000 different items, Saunders said the company also is trying to determine which core items it would need to stockpile during a pandemic.
ACM
I work at a Michigan grocery store as a cashier. I have shopped at this same store since it opened in 2000. There have been no changes that I can see that I haven’t caused by my shopping habits (they now carry 2 10 pound bags of rice and 2 18 pound bags of cat food as I purchase one of each every week). I have spoken to the grocery manager and found out that if an item is purchased every week, causing an out of stock situation, then the ordering computer increases the store’s stock by one. If I started purchasing 2 every week, then the store would then stock 3.
As far as sales go, it’s based on season, competition and what our distributors get “on-sale” as well. Our chain has done BOGO or BOG2 for years and isn’t a prepping thing, although, because of shelf life, these items are frequently highlighted.
My store doesn’t have a pandemic plan or have I found where the head office has anything that they are putting out for the stores.
Just my 2 cents
thanks for your insight, dragonlady!
I wonder if you won’t start hearing more info trickling down later this fall? Seems like in some ares, anyhow, some pandemic prep plans are being put into place. (Ugh — always avoid accidental alliteration!) (-:
ACM - To some degree I have felt the same way, especially when a few people mentioned canning supplies showing up in their stores. It is canning season. This is harvest time and even in cities some women still can certain old fashioned favorites, even if they have to buy it from the store or drive out to the country to get what they like to can. Another example of seasonal offerings in stores this time of year: Peanut butter. Why? Because school is starting.
My family just moved to east Texas a couple of months ago and I have noticed Brookshire Brothers grocery store advertising stocking up on supplies, but for hurricanes not bird flu. Their sales have helped me to restock my kitchen cabinets that we did not restock just before moving some because I like to have a least a 1 week supply of most foods we eat on a regular basis anyway.
Yeah, Poppy, but I’ve been canning for over 10 years and I’ve never seen such a proliferation of jars!
I am certain my usual Meijers has vastly increased the amount of just two items: dry/canned milk and rice. Since I was buying it before the change, I can see the difference. (And I can’t possibly be driving the amount of change.)
I work for a major NE grocery chain. I am in the corp office. I would have a chance to note if we start allocating the basics- and if there is not a storm predicted- I will post if and when I see that happening. I do know my company has a plan for it’s employess and a plan for getting food to the public- though I am not privy to the specifics of either. I have been watching for any indication that they have any inkling of a problem. The only trend I can see now, and it’s probably really just that I’m more focused on the subject is that many of our really good sales lately seem to be on what I would consider to be prep items- canned beans, tuna and such. Were I the government, and seeking to quietly get people to “prep” without coming out and saying it-(no panic) I would be directing grocery stores to run good specials on the important items so that people would hopefully buy more than usual. But likely I’m rading more into it than there really is.
Cinda – at 16:20 Were I the government … I would be directing grocery stores to run good specials on the important items so that people would hopefully buy more than usual.
Yikes. I hope that doesn’t become a government function.
dennis in Colorado, I’m with you on making *everything* a function of government. “Before you say, “There should be a law”, stop and think. All laws authorize government to use lethal force to see them carried out. Is the issue REALLY important enough that you want to enable the government to kill people over it?”
I remember a display of duct tape and plastic sheeting at grocery stores at that time when it was suggested in case of any chemical attacks. People were really buying those items up.
If the changes in holdings of certain items are as a result of the ordering system responding to weekly purchase patterns and out-of-stock items, then this would indicate that more people are quietly prepping than you realise - they will be driving the change in holdings. This has to be good news - even if it is only for the 3 days stockpile currently suggested in some areas.
Northstar – at 15:29 Perhaps you are right then, maybe there are more canning supplies being marketed. I haven’t done any canning in years, since before my mom died. I just know that at this time of year that is when the stores usually promote them and have more stock available.
Cinda – at 16:20 Were I the government … I would be directing grocery stores to run good specials on the important items so that people would hopefully buy more than usual.
Love it! Subliminal shopping suggestions from our government. Maybe that is why there are more canning supplies available on the shelves. Perhaps our government figures that if they cannot push us to prep directly they can do so by getting stores to market what we will need for prepping and we will get the idea in our heads to buy it anyway.
Now wait a minute….you CAN’T have it both ways….first you want the gov’t to tell people to prep and get all upset because they aren’t pushing the point incessentantly, but when Cinda suggests that the gov’t could ask grocer’s to push prep supplies by offering specials, everyone get’s uptight. The way I read her statement, she wasn’t saying the gov’t should FORCE grocers to do anything, just that they could add that to all the other guidelines the gov’t has already put out to get people to prep. I agree with her that ANY steps, suggested by ANY organization that could persuade people to prep more would be a good thing.
One of the main “promotional” items at my local Wal-Mart today (just inside the entry door): big 40 oz pump dispenser of Germ-X alcohol-based hand sanitizer gel. Price ~$4.40. Probably part of their back-to-school specials, rather than something directed at panflu preppers.
I posted an actual grocery chain pandemic plan about a year back on curevents.com
Made for VERY interesting reading.
I’ll have to see if I kept a copy and post it here in a separate thread.
It was very long, and most eye opening.
I think we may just be watching some seasonal changes that would be happening anyway. I’ve been watching for any hints of prepping behavior on the shelves or in peoples carts, but I havent seen too much this past year. I have noticed more canning supplies locally, which did catch my eye, but I frankly wouldnt have thought of those as pandemic supplies for the majority of people who not only dont know how to can, but also dont know how to grow things.
I have noticed at costco over the summer that the varieties of cans of ‘nicer’ soups has been greatly reduced. I’m glad I purchased ours last winter when there was a moderately good selection. I would expect this variety to increase again as cooler ‘soup season’ approaches.
Observation from shopping trip today. Big Lots had a large stock of canning jars. But as they were some unknown brand and for about the same price as I can get Ball jars at Ace anyhow, I didn’t buy any. I assume it was just seasonal for the fall canning season.
The ACE Hardware store in our little town always has three weekly specials posted on the lighted sign in their parking lot. If you lost all track of time but could view the ACE Hardware sign, you could know exactly what time of year it was. This week’s specials are right on schedule: “FRUIT DRYERS / CANNING JARS / APPLE PEELERS”.
They don’t have prepping on their mind, just the current peach harvest and upcoming apple harvest. Before long, it will be “TIRE CHAINS / ICE MELT / WOOD PELLETS”.
As Eccles noted, it is just normal seasonal promotions, not being prep-friendly.
Closed to maintain Forum speed.