My sister came to visit us for a couple of days, and asked for caffeine free Diet coke. I found one twelve pack in four stores.
The supermarket I usually shop at is using standard paper bags instead of the ones with their logos.
Canned cat food still in short supply here, as it has been for some time; that is, there is some, but some brands are missing entirely and the others while present have gaps on the shelves.
Holes have recently reappeared in the toilet paper and facial tissue – again, there’s some there, but big gaps on the shelves, and some brands missing or nearly so.
Gaps and missing items here and there on other items, too. Hard to predict what will be there and what won’t.
Canned fish has odd off brands and is almost all from dubious (as far as fisheries employment conditions) places. This may not be covid related, though; it may be environmental problems. Even more unnerving, if so.
The local Korean groceries (H-Mart and others) seem to have totally stopped selling white kimchi (a.k.a. baek kimchi or water kimchi or something like that.).
I don’t get it… just napa cabbage, a few thinly sliced radishes, and a spoonful of sugar. I’d make it myself but I don’t have the fridge space for it, and it’s not cold enough outside for it.
Distilled water shortage down here. I use it for my APAP machine. I suspect this is actually part of a bigger sourcing issue with cans, bottles, and jugs.
I’m indifferent to pumpkin spice, but I’d be overjoyed if this year there’s a shortage of that vile fake apple cinnamon crap they use to scent candles, room sprays, and pine cones. Most years it’s inescapable, and being exposed to it gives me a raging headache. Alas, I’ve already found some of the pine cones at Joann’s.
Do_Not_Taunt, you’re lucky so far. I went shopping tonight and there were bunches of empty shelves in both Walmart and Shaws. Brands of bread entirely missing, types of soda, frozen foods, disposable cups, cat food, and still almost empty spray paint displays…tonight’s trip was the first time I felt seriously worried.
Yeah. Jimmy Dean frozen sausage sandwiches are impossible to find at three different groceries.
Jars of regular couscous are still gone, but pearl couscous is plentiful.
I don’t eat pumpkin spice things, but I don’t see why anyone would be particularly happy they don’t exist. It’s not like them existing has any impact on my life. May hurt a few tired jokes, though.
I can’t find my Ice Mountain 2.5 gallon water!! No one seems to have it anymore. I just cut a square out of the top of my last 2.5 gallon container and refilled it using the 1 gallon jugs that are, at least for now, available on the shelves. I sealed it with a square piece of packing tape.
I have one of these. It’s probably easier than what you’re trying to do.
It reminded me of K-Mart. Or you could call it the dollarstorization of America, since deep discount stores are also not always fully stocked.
Thank you, thank you, thank you! 
Just ordered it and it will be delivered by Thursday evening! I’m just irritated that I somehow couldn’t think of this simple solution. I guess it is better than cutting a square out of an old container. LOL
I’ll keep monitoring things here. I don’t have a cat, and no need for cat food. And I don’t need distilled water, but I’ve never had any trouble finding the store brand knockoff of LaCroix in cans.
I wonder if part of what you’re seeing is the effect of hoarding. People have started to hear about shortages, have started worrying, and the natural next step is to stock up. Especially for non-perishables like canned cat food.
What I’ve been told about the canned cat food is that there are shortages in the ingredients; which AIUI are often the portions of animals less desired for human food. (Cats are obligate carnivores, so most of their food, if it’s at all decent quality, needs to be meat and fish.) I haven’t seen shortages of meat and fish as such since early in the pandemic, but prices are quite high, and particular items in fish are missing; though as I said earlier that may be due to environmental problems rather than to covid.
ETA: this has been a problem for some months now.
Hawaii is experiencing a shortage of at-home Covid testing kits.
I guess you missed the rants about the overabundance of this stuff right here on this very board!
@elfkin477 has supplied us with the Christmas-related version of this rant right here - I’ve seen the pine cones already in one store, but I couldn’t smell them from where I stood. The cinnamon brooms aren’t here yet - those are the items that usually overwhelm the entire section of the store in my experience.
My local grocery stores have been hit-or-miss for so long that I just consider it normal now. I think at least part of the problem here is also a shortage of stockers. The stuff in the back just isn’t making it out to the aisles as quickly as it used to.
Wegman’s was almost completely out of prepared salads (basically greens washed, chopped, and thrown in a plastic clamshell), but this may have been related to a digital coupon. Certain brands of bottled water are still pretty much unavailable at any store.
Strangely enough, my local stores were inundated with cinnamon pine cones and brooms early this year – starting in September. They’re almost gone now.
My favorite take-out place isn’t really fast food, but they do have distinctive packaging. I’ve noticed that they’ve switched to generic paper containers for some items.
I’m starting to think the for some reason, the US is having way more problems than Canada, despite our similarities, because I’ve not noticed any problems of this sort, at any time in the pandemic. The closest I’ve come was a Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen giving me regular paper towels instead of proper napkins, and honestly, that Popeye’s was always a dumpster fire, even before the pandemic.
But in my trip to an actual grocery store this week, I didn’t see any really bare shelves, and they had everything I would normally buy. Hell, they even had bacon on sale, just days after I’d read an article about how bacon prices were higher now than ever before. If it weren’t for the masks and arrows on the floor, I’d be hard pressed to prove that trip took place now, rather than 2 years ago.
Onion rings for some odd reason (there probably is a perfectly valid reason, but it struck me as odd anyway). 3 different restaurants and the local Sonic didn’t have them when I was there over the last, oh, say 3 weeks.
I’ve also noticed that stores aren’t stocked as well as they used to be for a lot of items. I’ve also seen a few really weird instances of fast food places or movie theaters not having what I would think are essentials…coke (or even soda in general), nachos, even French fries (and at a freaking McD’s…unreal!). Those were the real odd balls…no soda at a movie theater? No nachos? No hot dogs? No French fries at a Mc’Ds?? Weird.
I haven’t seen bare shelves in the supermarket for a while (aside from last year when the entire toilet paper aisle was completely empty) but I think some things are absent. I have a theory that the supermarkets are just moving stuff around to fill the blank spaces, partly because shelf space is so valuable.