After 11 years in Dubai, you kinda get used to the idea that something you take for granted today might not be available tomorrow. Over the years there have been lots of different commodities that have disappeared from the supermarket shelves for a few months only to reappear again later. There have also been a few things which have disappeared permanently - never reappearing!
Some of the things that Mrs DB and I have used in the past that are no longer available include Friskies cat food in soft pouches - Baggins used to eat that stuff exclusively, he point blank refused to eat anything else. One day there was none to be had and it took a while to get him to eat anything at all! Then about 6 months later it came back - we were in Spinney's one day and saw it on the shelves so we bought a years supply. Never seen it since!
We used to use Herbal Essences shower gel - but that would disappear for weeks at a time - every time we saw it we would buy several bottles in case it wasn't there next time we needed it. These days it can't be found anywhere.
And there have been others, but what the heck.
So today, two of our friends, Peter and Mary, are coming round. Now they will probably have a little G&T or two, and when people hare having G&T's my tipple of choice is a rye'n'dry. If you don't know, rye'n'dry is Canadian Club Rye Whisky mixed with Dry Ginger Ale, ice and a slice of orange - delicious!
Guess what, no Dry Ginger Ale, of any make! No Canada Dry, no Schweppes, no other make, not in Spinney's at Umm Sequem, not in Park'n'Shop. Oh dear, as shortages go, I don't think this is a good one.
Get some in, guys!
6 comments:
I feel for you......lately there is no Spelt cereal in Spinneys. I was very surprised to find it, got all excited tried it and now never to see it again.
Yesterday I was looking for Betty Crocker's icing sugar. NONE! Don't these people do inventories, like before the stuff runs out. Pathetic!
the same way my mom moans about her frozen chapatis and i moan about a particular brand of turkey bacon. i dunno the name but can point out which one it is though....
Hey, DB: BEEF!
http://mamastaverna.com/beef-with-artichokes-moschari-me-agkinares/
PS Is "dry" ginger ale different than regular ginger ale?
I suspect that stock control consists of waiting until the last item is sold, and then placing an order with the supplier. It takes many months to get enough orders to fill a forty-foot ISO container (2TEU) and the container isn't going to be shipped until it's full.
Then there's the Slow Boat to Jebel Ali, a load of time-consuming paperwork until, at last, the goods appear in the shops.
At this point there's a mass of panic buying (witness DB purchasing a year's supply of Kitty Chow) and the shelves are empty once more.
It seems beyond the wit of Man to ensure sensible levels of stock are maintained.
It's not just Wheety-Bangs and cat food. Pharmaceuticals for common complaints like asthma, hypothyroidism and diabetes (among others) can similarly vanish withut trace.
elle: Do you use Dorset Cereals Muesli? They have a spelt version.
mars: Yep, Oscar Meyers disappeared for a few months last year.
Lulu: love the beef with artichokes recipe - looking forward to finding out if it tastes as good as it sounds. No, they are the same - it used to be Canada Dry Ginger Ale and, certainly in England that got shortened to Dry ginger or just Dry.
GG: I personally think you have hit the nail on the head (assuming there is not a shortage of nails to hit). But all the supermarkets use EPOS to do their stock control with their warehouses, I suspect the problem lies with the buyers for the major importer!
They really need to start producing more stuff locally, after all if they can build nothing out of a desert, surely making food would be easy peasy!
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