A Shortage of SPAM? Mom and Apple Pie Next?

SPAM, I’m told is an acquired taste.  Growing up in a house where lunch was often tomato soup and grilled cheese, or Spanish rice or SPAM, I walked away liking the cheese and the SPAM.  The others, not so much.

While SPAM isn’t a staple of my diet, I do enjoy it as if it’s almost a delicacy.  It can be used in a variety of other dishes and sometimes I just slice it and fry it with some cheddar on top.  While shopping over the weekend, I was a bit taken aback to find a lot of the current varieties were gone.

This is twofold.  One, a lot of people have been buying canned goods in expectation of a long lockdown at home.  A case of SPAM in the pantry can go a long way during tough times.  According to the National Retail Federation, SPAM is a big seller!  A Minnesota newspaper reports the canned ham hasn’t sold like this in decades.  Other canned meats are also being scooped up by worried consumers.

In the long run, it could also be a sign of trouble.  The meat industry is being hammered by the fallout from the coronavirus.  You can read more by clicking on this link.  On Sunday morning I saw a post on Facebook.  A friend was warning at least one well known grocery chain may begin rationing meat.  Some in media are criticizing the President for his plans to get the meat industry at full capacity, disease or no disease.  I suspect many of the critics aren’t meat eaters and figure you can join them in chewing on some tasty lentil beans and other assorted cardboard.