large shops and small try to have as little stock as possable and use just in time delivery. this is because stock on shelves ties up money, less stock means more profit

after working in a supermarket warehouse asda/walmart for 9 years i can tell you we always had at least 800 lines of 33,000 out of stock at any given time. most this down to central distrobution warehouse out of stocks thanks to there just in time ordering from suppliers. the idea of just in time ordering is great but in practise it is a nightmare the computer controls set by central office fail to take into account that small increases in sales can cause people to think stock is short with half full shelf and they buy acouple extras to tide themselves over.

cookery shows and recipes in magazines and newspapers even the net can cause whole sections to be stripped in hours.

i use to do the stock and order manually so last years sales plus 5-7% was the standard depending on the line. now it is last years order plus 1% by the computers. lowers stock holding but does tend to leave alot of gaps.

I went shopping for seeds today at a small Feed & Seed store. The owner showed me where the garden seeds were at and commented that he didn't have much to offer and he's been waiting for the seed man to come and restock the display. The problem is that the seed man hasn't been around since his last visit, LAST SPRING!! He did let me have 40 packs of garden seeds for $1.50 per pack whereas they were marked at either $1.59 or $1.79 per pack.

I've come across an internet article about a week ago that stated garden seed suppliers of heirloom seeds are already running short and if someone wants to find/get the seeds of their desire, they had better order quickly.

I think people are waking up and looking at current events a little more realistically and they are getting scared! Just MHO.

+1 I agree 100 percent, not just with seeds but with food and other supplies as well. I think as time goes by more people will wake up and shortages will be more wide spread.

The price of wheat from my food co-op has gone up 33% from last year, all within the last 60 days. I fully expect it to NOT be available next month--when I went to pick up my order today, I noticed that just about everyone had ordered at least 25#, half about 50#. Previous to February, I was the only one ordering wheat in bulk.

Also, the price of pinto beans has gone up about 25% in the local "specialty" groceries.

The price of wheat has really gone up because of the big push towards corn based ethanol. The reality is that corn ethanol will seriously increase prices of food and do almost nothing to the prices of fuel. If for no other reason then that corn is a fertilizer greedy plant. And all those fertilizers come from fossil fuels. Mostly natural gas, but not exclusively. Add in the diesel fuel used in tractors, trucks and electricity used in refining the corn into ethanol and there's very little if any actual energy gain. But, the fields of wheat and soybeans are being planted with corn and the fields of corn are being turned into ethanol, not Doritos. All in all its pretty poor food and energy policy. My suggestion, boycott E85 fuel when and where you can and write your congressman to protest subsidies for ethanol fuel.

Just in case you've never thought about it, most of the raw seeds and beans that you buy in bulk for cooking are perfectly fine for GROWING. I scooped up a selection of grains and seeds, and sprouted them just to see.

Amaranth, quinoa, barley, red winter wheat, lentils, various beans... they all sprouted. The only ones that just sat there on the damp paper towel was the millet, which was hulled, and I didn't expect it to do anything. But if I wanted millet, I could pick up some of those heads of them that they sell for entertaining the parakeet (pet food section).

I think there are possibly more in the bulks seasonings section, and I'll check them out next time.

Also, I just bought ten pounds of my favorite bean, Anasazi, and I tried a few of them. Yep, they sprouted just fine. I think I'll be growing a patch of them this summer. (The shipping cost more than the beans.)

Also, feed stores tend to carry seeds for oats, buckwheat, sweet sorghum, etc (some may be treated).

Anyway, just a thought that seeds for sprouting (very nutritious) and growing don't only come on small packets for $2.69 for a few grams.

Sue

Good to know.

Amaranth is a good plant to try because you can use it as an ornamental, and most people would have no idea that the seed and leaves can be used as food.

I totally agree and NO, I didn't buy any seeds for those bulk peas and beans that I already have, for that reason.

I recently ordered 90lbs of bulk organic red winter wheat berries on line which cost about $1.00 per lb - plus shipping. While checking out our local organic coop market I found that they were selling organic red winter wheat berries at $0.69lb which you bag from their bins. I suppose the difference is not getting a 6 gallon hard pail to store it in. I will probably build up our stoage supply then refill from our local market as long as prices are favorable. We are also going to plant red winter wheat in one of our pastures and try to grow it ourselves.

In our neck of the woods diesel is up to $4.15 a gallon. I can't imagine the prices on shelves not going up as the cost of getting suppies to stores has been going up so fast.

Don't know if you like spelt, I prefer it, but its supposed to be easier to grow and more resistant to disease than wheat. It also has a higher protein/fiber content. The berries are priced about the same as red winter wheat. Slightly nutty taste (makes great bread).