Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Tuesday, Jan 13, 2026

This is where all the food has gone in the coronavirus panic buying

You’ve seen the photos of empty shelves in supermarkets as panic-buyers strip pasta and loo roll to pile up in their trolleys.
Now, photos could show where some of the food has actually gone.

People have been sharing their stockpiles at home, with rows and rows of cleaning products and pre-prepped meals.

Cupboards are crammed to the brim with everything people could need to get them through two weeks of isolation – and a few months more besides.

An Australian chef posted on Reddit: ‘Fully prepared for the coronas (90 plus meals).

‘I mainly just prepared so I don’t have to cook after work.

‘I am a chef, so erratic hours, not too keen on cooking after big days. Also if I do get quarantined I am set for the duration.’

He said he had removed a stack of the food for the photo to demonstrate there were two layers.

Some were impressed by the preparations, saying: ‘I have freezer envy. That is a beautiful sight.’

But another said: ‘I find this amount of meals way unnecessary, especially for coronavirus.

‘Besides, I am from northern Italy, and this kind of hoarding is exactly the reason why I went to the supermarket yesterday only to find the vegetable section completely empty.

‘I know you probably have bigger supermarkets in the US, but still…can you guarantee that nothing will go to waste?’

Meanwhile, others boasted about the hoards of food and cleaning supplies on Facebook.

One woman said she had pureed enough tomatoes to last for a year, according to MailOnline.

‘The tomatoes were just skinned in hot water, pureed in a food processor, and then cooked down for a while to remove the air from pureeing them,’ she wrote.

‘Then, they were put in jars and processed using the Fowlers Vacola method to vacuum seal them. I’ll use them for sauce and casserole bases during the year now.’

Another said she had been stockpiling long before coronavirus appeared, saying she had been buying discounted items in bulk for around five years after a period when she ‘couldn’t afford to feed the family’.

She added: ‘I wouldn’t stockpile perishables unless you are positive you will use them.’

Tesco’s chairman has insisted that people do not need to panic buy as the supermarket will be able to keep stocks up.

John Allan, was reacting after images on social media showed empty shelves across the UK supermarket sector.

He said that the panic buying has not threatened their supply chain and they were confident they could overcome the short-term shortages.

He said: ‘There’s plenty of product in the supply chain, there’s plenty of food at Tesco and other supermarkets, and I don’t think anybody needs to panic buy. We, and I’m sure our competitors, are re-filling our supply chains as rapidly as ever we can.’

Allan said it was unlikely Tesco, which has a 27.2 per cent UK grocery market share, would experience anything more than ‘very short term, temporary’ shortages of certain products.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Designates Saudi Arabia a Major Non-NATO Ally, Elevating US–Riyadh Defense Partnership
Trump Organization Deepens Saudi Property Focus with $10 Billion Luxury Developments
There is no sovereign immunity for poisoning millions with drugs.
Mohammed bin Salman’s Global Standing: Strategic Partner in Transition Amid Debate Over His Role
Saudi Arabia Opens Property Market to Foreign Buyers in Landmark Reform
The U.S. State Department’s account in Persian: “President Trump is a man of action. If you didn’t know it until now, now you do—do not play games with President Trump.”
CNN’s Ranking of Israel’s Women’s Rights Sparks Debate After Misleading Global Index Comparison
Saudi Arabia’s Shifting Regional Alignment Raises Strategic Concerns in Jerusalem
OPEC+ Holds Oil Output Steady Amid Member Tensions and Market Oversupply
Iranian Protests Intensify as Another Revolutionary Guard Member Is Killed and Khamenei Blames the West
President Trump Says United States Will Administer Venezuela Until a Secure Leadership Transition
Delta Force Identified as Unit Behind U.S. Operation That Captured Venezuela’s President
Trump Announces U.S. Large-Scale Strike on Venezuela, Declares President Maduro and Wife Captured
Saudi-UAE Rift Adds Complexity to Middle East Diplomacy as Trump Signals Firm Leadership
OPEC+ to Keep Oil Output Policy Unchanged Despite Saudi-UAE Tensions Over Yemen
Saudi Arabia and UAE at Odds in Yemen Conflict as Southern Offensive Deepens Gulf Rift
Abu Dhabi ‘Capital of Capital’: How Abu Dhabi Rose as a Sovereign Wealth Power
Diamonds Are Powering a New Quantum Revolution
Trump Threatens Strikes Against Iran if Nuclear Programme Is Restarted
Why Saudi Arabia May Recalibrate Its US Spending Commitments Amid Rising China–America Rivalry
Riyadh Air’s First Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner Completes Initial Test Flight, Advancing Saudi Carrier’s Launch
Saudi Arabia’s 2025: A Pivotal Year of Global Engagement and Domestic Transformation
Saudi Arabia to Introduce Sugar-Content Based Tax on Sweetened Drinks from January 2026
Saudi Hotels Prepare for New Hospitality Roles as Alcohol Curbs Ease
Global Airports Forum Highlights Saudi Arabia’s Emergence as a Leading Aviation Powerhouse
Saudi Arabia Weighs Strategic Choice on Iran Amid Regional Turbulence
Not Only F-35s: Saudi Arabia to Gain Access to the World’s Most Sensitive Technology
Saudi Arabia Condemns Sydney Bondi Beach Shooting and Expresses Solidarity with Australia
Washington Watches Beijing–Riyadh Rapprochement as Strategic Balance Shifts
Saudi Arabia Urges Stronger Partnerships and Efficient Aid Delivery at OCHA Donor Support Meeting in Geneva
Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 Drives Measurable Lift in Global Reputation and Influence
Alcohol Policies Vary Widely Across Muslim-Majority Countries, With Many Permitting Consumption Under Specific Rules
Saudi Arabia Clarifies No Formal Ban on Photography at Holy Mosques for Hajj 2026
Libya and Saudi Arabia Sign Strategic MoU to Boost Telecommunications Cooperation
Elon Musk’s xAI Announces Landmark 500-Megawatt AI Data Center in Saudi Arabia
Israel Moves to Safeguard Regional Stability as F-35 Sales Debate Intensifies
Cardi B to Make Historic Saudi Arabia Debut at Soundstorm 2025 Festival
U.S. Democratic Lawmakers Raise National Security and Influence Concerns Over Paramount’s Hostile Bid for Warner Bros. Discovery
Hackers Are Hiding Malware in Open-Source Tools and IDE Extensions
Traveling to USA? Homeland Security moving toward requiring foreign travelers to share social media history
Wall Street Analysts Clash With Riyadh Over Saudi Arabia’s Deficit Outlook
Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Cement $1 Trillion-Plus Deals in High-Profile White House Summit
Saudi Arabia Opens Alcohol Sales to Wealthy Non-Muslim Residents Under New Access Rules
U.S.–Saudi Rethink Deepens — Washington Moves Ahead Without Linking Riyadh to Israel Normalisation
Saudi Arabia and Israel Deprioritise Diplomacy: Normalisation No Longer a Middle-East Priority
Saudi Arabia Positions Itself as the Backbone of the Global AI Era
As Trump Deepens Ties with Saudi Arabia, Push for Israel Normalization Takes a Back Seat
Thai Food Village Debuts at Saudi Feast Food Festival 2025 Under Thai Commerce Minister Suphajee’s Lead
Saudi Arabia Sharpens Its Strategic Vision as Economic Transformation Enters New Phase
Saudi Arabia Projects $44 Billion Budget Shortfall in 2026 as Economy Rebalances
×