7.23.2008

Soaring diesel costs push truckies to the edge

Picture from Food Magazine

Did you see the 7.30 report on the ABC last night ? If not you can see it here: http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/ or read the transcript here: http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2008/s2311384.htm You can also google 'trucking industry strike' for the latest in news articles.


It seems that fuel prices are crippling many of the truckies. We have heard drivers saying that every time they go to fuel up it adds $100 to the bill. The difficulty for us as consumers is that EVERYTHING comes by truck. Most things you find on the supermarket shelf have travelled many hundreds of kilometres to get to the store. Eating Local suddenly becomes extremely important.

In all the articles I have read and watched the drivers are talking about a strike, 'go slow' or blockade on the 28th of July. There has already been one ' go slow' on a Sydney Freeway. The Transport Worker's Union say they are not in support of a strike, however other industry groups have formulated a list of demands to present to government.


Online forums are buzzing with people talking about their husbands, brothers, sons and cousins who are truckies that are going to strike. Diesel prices have risen 50c a litre since October and their runs are now unsustainable.


This has a major impact on us as householders. I do not blame the truckies, as there are numerous issues which must be addressed for them. Regardless of how those issues are resolved or played out, the matter of importance for me is the impact on households. Ask yourself this question..... How long can you sustain your household without going to a shop ?


QUOTE:

" Truck drivers are planning a nationwide two-week strike that could limit the supply of food and fuel. Requesting better pay and conditions, the organisers, led by the Australian Long Distance Owners’ and Drivers’ Association, are asking truck drivers to strike for two weeks from July 28.
The planned strike could have serious consequences on food industry supplies.One of the transport company owners said that the stoppage would highlight the impact the economy would be subjected to if the industry was to collapse. “On day three of the stoppage shops will run out of food, on day four service stations will run out of petrol, on day five we will run out of [drinkable] water … and on day 10 industry will shut down because there will be no power,” Hervey Bay’s Peter Schuback said. "

SOURCE: Food Magazine: Food and Beverage Industry News


Be wise. Apply the 6P principle. Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Always make sure that you have sufficient supplies on hand to lessen the impact of any events which prevent you from obtaining food. You never know what these events may be: power shortages, floods, storm damage, sickness in the family, trucking strikes, petrol shortages. Having a good supply in your cupboards is a great insurance policy.

5 comments:

Kez said...

Well I'd planned not to go to the supermarket for 4 weeks, it may end up being all shops!

I'm feeling very pleased that I've started to stockpile recently. I just picked up a bulk meat order so now have a freezer full of meat. I also have 25kg of rice so we won't be starving any time soon :)

I have some stocks of tinned & frozen fruit & veges (not much coming out of the garden atm). Admittedly it mightn't be very exciting or balanced, but we'd survive for quite a while.

We're in a much better position than we would have been at the start of this year.

Michelle said...

I am pretty well prepeared for this with about 2 months worth of food in the house and a bit still coming from the garden.
I am more likely to run out of petrol than anything. We have one 20 litre jerrycan and I will get another one tomorrow and fill them both up.
I also need to go and get all our gas bottles filled up just in case we end up cooking on the BBQ.
I was going to stock up the freezer with more meat but if we run out of power I'm not sure if that would be a good idea.
I'm quite looking forward to seeing how I cope with this and seeing what lessons I can learn from it, after all this could be a glimpse of what peak oil will look like.

Ailsa said...

I absolutely agree with have a supply on hand, just incase. Maybe we could all come up with a list together and yuou could post it on your blog? I'm sure there are things I haven't thought of.

Becca said...

What a great article. We just went grocery shopping today and stocked up on beans, rice, tea, flour, cheese and so forth. The garden is producing an abundance of tomatoes, herbs and green beans so we're pretty well set in that department. I'm interested in hearing what happens!

Anonymous said...

I was very interested when my son showed me the pantry in his new house. A tiny little closet with shelves...obviously not able to hold much more than a weeks worth of groceries. He said that this is a typical pantry for all the new houses. This generation just presumes that the stores will always be stocked with what they need, for a reasonable price. I am afraid that they are in for a rude awakening...at the very least, even if there are no shortages, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that the pantry staples that I buy and stockpile today are going to be more costly a month or so down the road, in these uncertain economic times. Thank you for your blog, I just recently stumbled upon it and the things that you write about are giving me a lot to think about! Debby from http://athomeinwyoming.com/

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