Their running out of sliced bread is a good sign and a very good thing. It means that people are laying in extra, just in case. A loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter is actually a very good start. It every family would just meet this standard, and lay in a couple of gallons of water, it would go a long way to making them at least minimally prepared.

Preparedness, as with just about anything else, gives you the most bang for the buck when you first start. The difference between nothing and minimal supplies is huge. The difference between six months supplies and nine month isn't so great.