WTF?? " There is a national shortage of canned corned beef"

[dixiegrrrrl]

says the sign in the canned meat aisle of my local Winn Dixie, said store apologizing for being out of canned corned beef.

For the past 3 weeks, the W/D brand of frozen mixed vegies, and frozen peas was not to be found in the freezer aisle.

Anyone else been noticing a pattern of "missing" grocery items of late?

[PBS Poll-435]

1. That is strange

Really.

[Davis_X_Machina]

2. Tinned corned beef is all imported from...

...Paraguay, Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. This shortage may have nothing to do with the others, and may have something to do with where it comes from

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. The beauty of DU..there is someone here who knows the countries that make tinned corned beef.

thanks....:hi:

[leeroysphitz]

8. +1

[Strelnikov_]

23. Result of SA Drought? n/t

[Motown_Johnny]

3. Nope

maybe Winn Dixie has an issue with one of their wholesalers



(although I don't buy canned corned beef or frozen vegetables)

[PBS Poll-435]

4. I buy and use "steam in the bag" sweet corn from Safeway

Probably dangerous but SO convenient.

:P

[XanaDUer]

5. When I was a kid, we'd fry up eggs and a can of corned beef

Haven't had it in aeons. That brings back memories. As to the topic - a shortage of canned corned beef? Weird.

[eleny]

7. For the past several weeks Pepcid products haven't been available locally

[Tikki]

9. One of the really good canned corned beef was a 'Product of Argentina'

iirc...Maybe something to do with that.

We are missing a certain brand of salsa and we had to
hunt around for frozen green beans here.

Store manager told us they may be re-labeling some products that show up later.


The Tikkis

[LiberalLoner]

10. Yes. Ever since the first big run-up in gasoline prices recently (I mean

a few years ago now) the shelves have become emptier and emptier. I didn't know that other people noticed like I have.

[XanaDUer]

12. I noticed even so-called high-end stores like Publix

Items were missing, and everything looked picked over and messy. It could also do with not having enough staff. You know, do more with less. And the produce is on the verge of going rotten, too. I noticed that during the gasoline price hike.

[dixiegrrrrl]

19. I am seeing same thing here.

Bare shelf areas are now common, and in other parts of the store there will be half a shelf of some item, all spread out, where there used to be 2-3 other items in that space.
Some items are not as plentiful, either, only 4-5 cartons of creamer on a shelf at a time, where a year ago there used to be 2-3 widths of that product.


Could be the stores are ordering less until needed.

Have noticed this in several food stores in our rural area.
Have no idea what city stores look like.

[XanaDUer]

22. And, of course, Wal-Mart pioneered the just-in-time stocking system

so maybe stores are moving towards that model to stay "competitive". Since Wal-Mart seems to dictate almost everything in the US at this point. I remember thinking about how stores looked when I was a kid - well stocked, clean, fresh produce.

[DJ13]

11. Im seeing many misc items missing from shelves recently

Even at the local Walmart theres more empty spaces than there used to be.

[rug]

13. Finally, a silver lining.

[PBS Poll-435]

14. Bad. Just bad.

:rofl:

[Lucian]

15. Is that really a bad thing?

[AsahinaKimi]

42. too right

I wouldn't touch that stuff with a ten foot pole.

[mudplanet]

51. History will show that 'the great corned beef shortage of 2010' coincided with

a huge slump in the rate of heart disease.

I like the stuff, too, but it ain't good for you.

[Cleita]

16. Maybe because it's what the "nouveau pauvres" can afford so

it's created a demand for cheaper food.

[TwilightGardener]

17. Blechh. They can have it, whoever is stocking up.

[prolesunited]

18. It's Glenn Beck's fault

He's urging his followers to stock up on food supplies, and judging by your location, they must be listening in your area.

He's also pimping survivalist disaster kits.
http://www.businessinsider.com/glenn-beck-food-insurance-2010-10

With that and their gold, we'll all be set -- especially Glenn Beck.

[cutlassmama]

35. Yep. My son told me about this. Unfortunately he listens to that nutcase.

He's promoting people stocking up for the coming disaster. Whatever that may be...

[malaise]

20. Canned corned beef was the staple following hurricane Gilbert

back in 1988. We don't eat canned stuff or red meat but I can tell you that I know people who will never eat another can after nearly six weeks of nothing else.
I think (per capita) Jamaicans eats more corned beef than anyone on the planet.

[jannyk]

21. I'm currently on Vancouver Island - no shortage of CB in Sooke

- which is our nearest 'town'. I bought 3 cans a few days ago to make 'hash', 3 brands to choose from and seemed plentiful. However, neither of the 2 big supermarkets had any canned carrots. Do you have all the carrots? I'll swap you some for some corned beef.

:hi:

[dixiegrrrrl]

30. In 1974 I had the best gin and tonic of my life on Vancouver Island.

After all these years I still remember it.

I think we have canned carrots down here. If not, how about canned spicy hot turnip greens.?
BIG seller in the South.
( I have never tried them)

[prolesunited]

37. Maybe you should start selling it on eBay

and clean up on it.

[Blues Heron]

24. what's it like? is it ground beef thats been "corned" or is it an actual piece of beef

:shrug: I've seen it on the shelves, never bought it. Is it like the cans of USDA surplus beef from the 70's?

[whistler162]

26. What is Corned Beef

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corned_beef

[Recursion]

27. Have you ever had a Reuben sandwich?

Corned beef is the meat in that. The canned stuff is a compressed, Spam-like version of that, often sold as a hash with chopped up potato bits. Awesome for breakfast with some eggs over easy and tobasco.

[dixiegrrrrl]

32. Double awesome for S.O.S.

over new potatoes....memories of childhood....my mother could make the best white gravy in the world.
Toss in a can of corned beef ( NOT corned beef hash, which has potatoes) and serve over flattened boiled
red potatoes, lots of pepper....yummers.
Also pretty good sliced for a sandwich..with Miracle Whip.

I know , I know..there are Miracle Whip people and non-Miracle Whip people,
but I grew up eating that stuff in the 50's....ALL foods were white or pastel in the 50's.

[pinboy3niner]

25. There's a cattle shortage in South America

(Edited to delete old link)

There were stories in the Spring about Argentine herds being reduced by 10,000 head as ranchers converted to more profitable forms of agriculture.

These CB shortages seem to recur regularly, anyway, often in conjunction with outbreaks of hoof and mouth disease in South American cattle herds.

[notadmblnd]

28. Never ate corned beef in a can. Unless you're talking about that hash stuff

that smells and tastes like dog food? But I do make my own corned beef. Just get a brisket and some pickling spice (you'll need to google a recipie) and let it marinade for a few weeks.

[Lint Head]

29. No joke. I noticed a shortage of candy corn at Halloween.

[Blues Heron]

31. yum

[rampart]

33. new orleans area shortage

no corned beef at winn dixie, wal mart, or several local stores. none at target in slidell. walgreens advertised a sale - none on the shelves at 4 locations.

corned beef is the best carniverous emergency ration (yes, we're stocking up) and the best tamales use a corned beef mix. our traditional new years meal is corned beef & cabbage.

[dixiegrrrrl]

34. I will check at Dollar Store tomorrow.

Usually they have it.

If Beck is blathering about stocking up, Dollar Store shelves will tell the tale around here.

Ya know, I can see corned beef in tamales....I will have to look for a recipe.

[prolesunited]

36. Why are you stocking up?

What do you think will happen?

[AngryAmish]

50. If you think the best tamales have corned beef in them, then you gotta try some real tamales

[ctaylors6]

38. Eggo frozen waffles were missing for many weeks

This past summer and early fall, eggo had a problem and the grocery stores around me were without frozen waffles a number of times. With a sign on the freezer door and everything. It was traumatic for me ... when my kids wanted waffles I had to make them from scratch.

[thelordofhell]

46. The main Eggo manufacturing center was flooded out

They had to build up new facilities.

[dixiegrrrrl]

47. Where IS that plant, btw? Iowa?

[thelordofhell]

55. Atlanta

Between that plant flood and a bacteria problem, Eggo had to clean and re-tool entire plants.

[Safetykitten]

39. Let me know when the Keebler aisle is unstocked...then I panic.

[SheilaT]

40. I'm in Santa Fe, NM, and I haven't

noticed any shortages, at least not of the things I normally buy. Canned corned beef isn't one of them.

There are things I can't get here, but that's because I moved from a different part of the country, and so the mix of what's offered here is somewhat different than back in Kansas.

[flvegan]

41. The Vegan Agenda (TM) is nigh upon you.

:hide:

:rofl:

[Blues Heron]

43. CVS is out of both canned corned beef and corned beef hash...

But Safeway has canned corned beef from both Uraguay and Argentina @ 3.99 for 12 oz. can (expiration date 11/2015)

[dixiegrrrrl]

44. 4.00 bucks a can?????? Gasp.

[KamaAina]

45. Not good news for Hawai'i

the stuff is nearly as ubiquitous there as Spam.

[shanti]

48. it must be an island thing

an old friend from jamaica lived on that stuff! it's common there too.

[KamaAina]

49. It is. Guam consumes even more Spam than Hawai'i.

It goes back to World War II, when shipments of fresh stuff from the mainland were halted. It also works well in places where the electricity goes out for days or even weeks at a time.

[slackmaster]

52. Don't ask impertinent questions. You will be issued a life jacket later this week.

[sammytko]

53. shop in the mornings when the shelves are full, if you can

My nephew always tells me this when I whine and complain about missing products. He works for a large chain in Texas. They do not have extras in the back.

I shopped at 8 in the morning at the Air Force commissary and lo and behold - everything I needed was there. They usually run out of dry cat food and orange juice for some reason.

[mrmpa]

54. Just talked about this last night

We do a lot of shopping at Costco. Items we've always been able to get there are MIA, soups, cheeses, canned meats and tuna. At the local level we are seeing canned meats, canned and frozen veggies, 1% milk and some breads are also MIA. I'm thinking there is some kind of "conspiracy" about these missing items, perhaps it's to raise prices or perhaps to lower manufacturing output for the end of the year.

[earth mom]

56. Motrin was taken off the shelves earlier this year. I never heard a word until I went to buy

some past week.

Apparently it was a "phantom recall". Yeah, the pharma giants really care about the people of this country. Yeah right. :eyes:

Check this out:

Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl, St. Joseph Aspirin, Rolaids Recall
Containers' Moldy Odor to Blame for Recall of 60 Million Over-the-Counter Products

By Daniel J. DeNoon
WebMD Health News

Jan. 15, 2010 -- Because of a sickening smell in some containers, 54 million packages of 27 different over-the-counter remedies now are being recalled.

Products include various types of child and/or adult Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl, St. Joseph Aspirin, Rolaids, and Simply Sleep. This adds to the 6 million packages of Tylenol recalled late last year, bringing the total number of recalled products to 60 million.

A musty, moldy odor coming from the products has sickened at least 70 people with nausea, stomach pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. The symptoms go away by themselves and no one has been seriously injured.

The FDA says Johnson & Johnson's McNeil Consumer Health Care knew of the problem for more than a year. When the company did act in November and December 2008, it did too little too late, said Deborah M. Autor, director of the FDA's Office of Compliance.

<snip>

Specific products included in the recall include:

* Children's Motrin
* Children's Tylenol
* Extra Strength Tylenol
* Regular Strength Tylenol
* Tylenol 8 Hour
* Tylenol Arthritis
* Tylenol PM
* Benadryl
* Motrin IB
* Rolaids
* Simply Sleep
* St. Joseph Aspirin

more:
http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/news/20100115/tylenol-motrin-benedryl-rolaids-aspirin-recall


Maker of children's drugs accused of hiding Motrin recall from public

By Lyndsey Layton
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, May 28, 2010

The company at the center of a massive recall of children's Tylenol and other popular over-the-counter products tried to perform a "phantom recall" of defective Motrin by sending contractors around the country to buy up the medicine from stores without alerting regulators or the public, according to the chairman of a Congressional committee investigating the company.


<snip>

"It is a moral outrage for a company specifically marketing its products for children to allow a culture of neglect and irresponsibility to taint the medicines that parents and physicians trust to help children get well," said Rep. Darrell Issa (Calif.), the committee's ranking Republican, who displayed a bottle of Children's Tylenol at his seat.

The FDA, which is investigating McNeil's three production facilities in the United States and is considering criminal prosecutions, found multiple violations of good manufacturing practices at McNeil's largest facility in Fort Washington, Pa., according to FDA officials. The company stopped production at that facility in April just days before FDA officials conducted a two-week inspection that resulted in the recall of more than 40 varieties of the medicines for infants and children. It remains closed.

The recalled medicine may contain extra dosages of active ingredients and tiny particles that the FDA has identified as including nickel, chromium and cellulose. Some of the medicines also contained an ingredient that came from a master lot that was contaminated with a bacterium known as B. cepacia, according to the FDA.

<snip

more:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/27/AR2010052705484.html

[petronius]

57. Sorry about that - I restocked my bomb shelter last week...

Bring on the apocalypse! :9

[Dappleganger]

58. NO!!!

/this Irish-Welsh momma runs screaming