Following the launch of the Government's Be Ready campaign, more than one in four UK adults (27 per cent) are stockpiling, or considering stockpiling, food and drink in case of supply-chain issues or rising costs, according to new research from Barclays.
Launched on 22 October, the campaign encourages households to prepare for three days of disruption to essential services such as power, water, phone networks and internet access. The guidance recommends taking small, affordable steps, including keeping non-perishable food, bottled water, torches, batteries and essential medicines at home.
In response, three in five UK adults (60 per cent) have taken, or are considering taking, at least one action to prepare. This includes stockpiling food and drink (27 per cent), buying items for power cuts (26 per cent), and stockpiling toiletries and other household essentials (23 per cent).
Items bought, or being considered, following recent household preparedness news | |
Item | UK adults |
Tinned, dried or other non-perishable food | 31% |
Bottled water | 30% |
Spare batteries | 23% |
Toiletries and bathroom products | 23% |
Essential medicines or medical supplies | 19% |
Torches | 18% |
Calm preparation – not panic buying
The findings point to a quieter kind of stocking up than in the first weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic. In March 2020, Barclays data showed supermarket spending rose 21.3 per cent year-on-year. Spending at specialist food and drink stores, such as greengrocers and off-licences, grew 30.5 per cent, and discount stores rose 25.2 per cent. In the week before tighter restrictions came in (16 to 22 March 2020), supermarket spending jumped 49 per cent.
Even then, research from the Institute for Fiscal Studies found the spike was driven mainly by many more households than usual buying a little extra, rather than a small number buying in bulk – the same small-steps approach the Be Ready campaign now encourages.
Today's picture is closer to the run-up to a possible no-deal Brexit. In February 2019, one in 10 shoppers said they had started stockpiling groceries and a further 26 per cent were considering it, according to Kantar.
Stockpiling then and now | |
Moment | What the data showed |
Brexit (February 2019) | 10% had started stockpiling groceries; a further 26% were considering it (Kantar) |
Covid-19 pandemic (March 2020) | Supermarket spending up 21.3% year-on-year, and up 49% in the week before lockdown (Barclays) |
Be Ready campaign (October 2026) | 27% stockpiling, or considering stockpiling, food and drink (Barclays) |
Fewer than half have three days of food and water
Despite the steps being considered, fewer than half (44 per cent) say their household currently has enough food and drinking water to last at least three days. A further 22 per cent have enough food but not enough drinking water, while 10 per cent have enough drinking water but not enough food. One in nine (12 per cent) say they have neither enough food nor enough drinking water for at least three days.
The findings also show an age split, with three in ten 18 to 34-year-olds (31 per cent) saying they have enough food and drinking water for at least three days, compared with 45 per cent of 35 to 54-year-olds and 53 per cent of those aged 55 and over. Meanwhile, 18 per cent of 18 to 34-year-olds say they have neither, compared with 8 per cent of those aged 55 and over.
Steven Fergus, Head of Retail at Barclays, said: "A lot of people are clearly asking themselves, 'what would I do if the power went off or the taps ran dry for a few days?' That's a sensible question. And this feels very different to the empty shelves of 2020. It's people putting an extra tin or a pack of batteries in the trolley, just in case.
“The worry is that fewer than half of households could get through three days right now, and younger people are the least ready. You don't need to do it all in one go. Adding one or two bits to your weekly shop is an easy way to get there without a big hit to your budget."