What item(s) is still hard to find or low quantity in the stores now?

I saw some changes at the market this week of may 19, 2020. No lamb or pork. Although I source pork at a nearby farm. Chicken prices have doubled since March. Limited supply. We were notified about the yeast shortage in Tennessee by a friend so we stocked up in April. This week shows only quick rise yeast for bread machines. Country folk bake bread and pizza. Carolina brown rice has returned to the shelves but one bag limit on any rice. We picked up two Romen Beef for the fun of it. Pasta and various tomato products in the can have been in good supply. For some reason the huge fresh mushroom display was empty. My local markets are not reliable so I drive twenty or so miles to Market Basket. A terrific New England chain. Here is the link on how to make safe hand sanitizer.

 

Mushroom sales are up due to more folks cooking at home so there is a shortage. It's pretty easy to maintain social distance when picking, but more difficult on the packing and processing side. Plus there is an issue with getting labor. Fun Fact: 65% of the US fresh mushroom crop is grown in Southeast PA.

Market Basket is a great company, I read a story awhile ago as to how the employees went on strike to bring back the CEO.

 

In my visits to stores and speaking to store managers, “mystery” meat items like Spam, Vienna Sausages, potted meat and so forth have also seen sales spike like never before.

 

To be fair, Spam is delicious when used properly (I have an awesome recipe for sriracha Spam fried rice) and was always a Christmas morning treat at my family (we have a lot of members from the Caribbean). I personally have constant difficulty finding the canned soup I like, and certain meats can be iffy depending on the store and when you go -- last time I got delivery, the store didn't have boneless/skinless chicken thighs or thin pork loins. Frozen stuff is hit-or-miss, but I blame that more on the lack of coordination between Instacart and the individual stores.

 

Shelf-stable items are going to be first and hardest hit. They are convenient. They are shelf-stable. A good hunk of the populace is accustomed to/comfortable cooking with 'em.

 

This one is gonna interest maybe 1/4 of 1% of the folks here, and it's never really been "on the shelves", but it's been far less readily available since the corona hit the fan.

I'm talking about 3d printer filament. Back in February places like Amazon had a great selection, all colors, all materials, street price in the low $20s for a kilogram spool. Now it's pretty much catch as catch can, with many items simply "unavailable" and off-brands are now selling in the high $20s to $40s. I've gotten fond of the Hatchbox brand and now it seems very hard to find at any price in the popular colors and materials. Amazon is selling Prusament brand (one of the better ones) for $60-$70-ish, or about a threefold increase in the past three months.

 

Can you make Spam with it?

 

No, but the "soft printable" plastics have about the same consistency as Spam.

 

Lol, preppers must be buying it up to print AR15 lowers. Jokes aside, I only knew one person with a 3d printer and they used it to make table top gaming pieces but it probably has a lot of practical uses outside of ATF offenses.

 

The "makerspace" (technology cooperative) I belong to has a strict rule, subject to bar and ban, for attempting to print weapons in the lab. Of course they have been closed for 2 months, so it's kinda moot.

One of the guys in one of the classes I took printed a very nice chess set.

(And sorry for dragging this thread off topic.)

 

There are a few large groups of young farmers in Maine concentrating just on mushrooms. A Chinese couple visiting their daughter in a private school here fell in love with Maine and decided to build a mushroom cultivation site in Auburn that has been successful. The story of the Market Basket employees fighting to support the leadership in a takeover by family is a Great American labor story that was buried by the press in the back pages. One of the few fights by labor and management going on strike together and winning. It should be made into a movie and a few dozen books.

 

I found this picture while researching my future Hawaii trip. Of course I will have to try them all.

 

I took this picture while vacationing in Kauai two years ago, (un)fortunately, no time to sample any.

 

I think spam has stayed on the shelves here. I won’t eat it.

 

One of my customers was born in Argentina, he mentioned that one of his favorite midweek Family meals was to shred a can of corned beef and mix it with a jar of spaghetti sauce poured over pasta. It had to be from Argentina, though. It sounds gross, but I made it once and thought it was pretty good.

Then again, one of my childhood faves was ground beef and onion browned in a skillet, stir in a can of Franco American brown gravy, then pour over pasta.

 

That canned corned beef is gross.

Remember the lunch meat style canned corned beef? They had to slice it thick and put wax paper between each slice to keep it from sticking together. Their was an art to slicing corned beef. It was chock full of fat and other unknown substances but I loved it!

 

Canned meat and "meat," generally, is pretty gross. Man, all the Underwood sandwiches we ate as kids in rest stops and picnic areas all across the country!

I did the weekly shop yesterday. Pasta was about back to normal and there was a lot of rice. Didn't look at paper and cleaning supplies. Meat was fine; deli, eggs, produce, dairy, too. Forget flour. What's coming in x months, a massive celiac outbreak?!? lol

 

I learned something new yesterday. A t-bone and a porterhouse are the same cut of meat, but a porterhouse has a larger tenderloin.

I figured I better grab a t-bone for grilling on Memorial Day. I almost gagged when I saw the price of $14.08. I started to put it back when I looked again and $8.00 with the Savings Club card. So, I know have the steak and the shrimp part in the freezer.

 

Yep, that is the difference.