Shoppers hoard milk ahead of storm, but why?

Video: Time lapse of milk aisle at Sburg ShopRite
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Tanya Opoulou of East Stroudsburg picks up some milk at the Stroudsburg ShopRite on Monday. It was her normal shopping day, but many people compulsively purchase bread, milk and eggs prior to a snowstorm.

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Keith R. Stevenson/Pocono Record
Howard Frank

When a snowstorm is approaching, there's one place that's more popular than the beer stand at a baseball stadium on a summer's day: the local supermarket.

It's ground zero for storm preparations, as our customary shopping behaviors go into fright-driven overdrive.

Video: Time lapse of milk flying off the shelf at Stroudsburg ShopRite ahead of storm

"They panic," said Vince Bini, a manager at ShopRite in Stroudsburg. "It all starts with the weather reports. The media does play a big part of alerting our customers there will be inclement weather patterns, and they react."

Shopper traffic can jump by as much as 50 percent at ShopRite during the pre-storm build-up.

"We monitor these storms constantly and react to any pending weather by adjusting our orders to make sure we are stocked on the key items," said Tim Weithknecht, general manager of the Giant supermarket in Bartonsville.

What do shoppers buy? Just about anything, but with an emphasis on the necessities — milk, eggs and bread. Giant also experiences increased activity in the meat department and deli counter.

But there are some surprises, too.

"They'll hit the snacks hard," Weithknecht said. "Chips and pretzels do much better in snowstorms."

ShopRite's Bini agreed.

"Some will be necessity food and some will be comfort food, like ice cream and chips. It is kind of like a party in a way, but they touch on the staple items first — they want to make sure they have enough food in case they don't get out the day after."

Water does very well too, Weithknecht said. Salt and bundled firewood are also strong sellers before a storm.

So, what's behind the rush to shop?

"In two words: security and fear," said Stroudsburg clinical psychologist John Abbruzzese. "They are fearful they will be stuck for however long."

It's more common with older residents, Abbruzzese said.

"When they grew up, they didn't have the transportation that's available to them now. So they were stuck in the house and they didn't want to run out of milk and bread. And peanut butter and jelly. With that in the house, they are safe."

Abbruzzese said the hoarding thing is pretty much a matter of people getting into a feeling of false security.

"It's false because in most cases we don't really need to hoard. Most of the time someone can be there to help you or get you out within a day."

Weis Markets stores were busier Monday and expected to be even busier during the evening rush hour. The store scheduled extra staff — cashiers, stock clerks and people who work in the service departments, like produce and deli/meat.

"We've been preparing for this storm since Friday — and have been sending out extra shipments of high-demand snowstorm items — bread, milk, eggs, diapers, water and cat litter," Spokesman Dennis Curtin said.

Dr. Anthony Drago, chairman of the psychology department at East Stroudsburg University, thinks that an ice storm that left some parts of the area without power a few years ago exacerbate the feelings of fright that surround a storm.

And he believes excessive pre-storm shopping is just an overreaction to the hype that occurs. For most people, he said, excessive shopping is a normal reaction to a stressful situation that he links to a phenomena called mass contagion.

"You see people getting prepared for the worst and start thinking, 'Maybe I'm missing something and need to start doing the same thing,'" he said. "It's just a normal human condition."

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