There's loads of fresh fruit and vegetables around at the moment. Make the most of buying in season produce. Photo / NZME
There's loads of fresh fruit and vegetables around at the moment. Make the most of buying in season produce. Photo / NZME
It's harvest time for lots of yummy produce including tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, plums . . . the list goes on.
In fact, as I look out of my window I see apple trees laden with fruit.
And that means it's time to make some jam, relish, pickle and maybe somepickled onions.
I was lucky enough to be given some delicious plums by one of my school friends. Right, I thought to myself, I'm going to make some jam. I added sugar to my shopping list and off I went to the supermarket.
No sugar. The shelf was empty apart from some caster sugar, which I suppose would have been fine but I was so blown away by the empty shelf that my mind went a tad blank.
It wasn't just the sugar that was gone either - there were empty spaces all over the show. Why did everyone suddenly feel the need to buy sugar? Maybe they were thinking about all the relishes and jams they could make this season.
I do understand the survival instinct, though, after seeing what happened in Australia when Omicron hit and the supply system buckled under huge stress, leaving supermarket shelves practically bare.
One of my daughters in Australia took her nearly 10-year-old to the supermarket about a month ago. She was really distressed when she saw all the empty shelves. Her mother tried to reassure her that just because they couldn't get the usual packet of pasta, for instance, they could easily find something else to have for dinner.
Linda Hall is assistant editor at Hawke's Bay Today.
When my daughter went to put two cans of the same product in her trolley, my granddaughter got even more upset and insisted that she put one back for the next person. Mum did - and daughter is banned from the supermarket for now.
My other daughter in Australia and her husband and two children are just coming out of isolation after they all caught Covid. They were all vaccinated.
They did not starve. People dropped food at their door and they could also order takeaways if they wanted to.
She did say that just when she thought she was feeling better, "Covid threw something else at me".
So anyway, back to the sugar. The next day I went to the FourSquare down Heretaunga St and, lo and behold, there was plenty of sugar - and it was on special.
Jam is made. As is tomato relish and cucumber pickle with produce from the garden.
I think the supermarket shelves are looking better now, and we should all take a deep breath and remember that we live in a kind and caring community. Help is just a phone call away, there will be plenty for everyone.
If you ever find yourself in isolation and can't access essentials, don't be too proud to reach out.
