Thursday, September 27, 2001

Stocked commissaries fail to ease shoppers' worries of future shortages

By Greg Tyler, Sasebo bureau chief

Greg Tyler / Stars and Stripes Lucilla Fitzgerald, a Navy spouse who lives at Sasebo Naval Base, Japan shops last week in the Nakumura grocery market in downtown Sasebo, about a 10 minute walk from Sasebo Naval Base's main base housing.

SASEBO NAVAL BASE, Japan — Facing the possibility of food shortages because of the terrorist strikes in the United States, some commissary shoppers in the Pacific are worried they may have to go off-base for vital items such as milk, bread and eggs.

There have been few reports of shortages in Pacific commissaries since the Sept. 11 attacks, but many fear tighter security could mean fewer food shipments to local stores.

“Yes, I do have concerns,” said Sarah Bramblett, a mother of two, and wife of Lt. Shane Bramblett, who serves on the minesweeper USS Patriot stationed at Sasebo Naval Base.

“I mean, they’re already running low on milk and having to ration … and they’ve run out of the name-brand diapers, and instead have the cheaper types some people don’t like to use,” she said. “We could see more of that. You worry, especially if security tightens more.”

Bramblett said she is not prepared to turn to local grocery markets — where prices can be considerably higher — for her family’s needs.

“I can’t read Japanese,” she said, “plus, I feel limited on buying meat in town that you would feel comfortable with. This is a real concern.”

Lucilla Fitzgerald, the wife of Chief Petty Officer John Fitzgerald from the USS Essex, said she often shops at Nakumura, a grocery market in downtown Sasebo located about a half-mile from her home.

“I like to shop here,” she said. “But … I’m kind of worried that the commissary might run out of certain things because of the situation right now.”

Commissary officials at Sasebo did not respond to queries regarding possible shortages, but commissary and base officials at other Pacific bases say consumers don’t need to worry: the shelves are stocked.

Sticker shock

If shoppers are forced to head outside the gates for items, they could be in for a big surprise.

At Nakumura, although the products are labeled in Japanese, many items are priced comparably with the commissary. Other items, however, are decidedly higher, such as the large cantaloupes selling for about $13.45.

At Marufuji, near Yokota Air Base in Fussa City, Japan, packages of six bread slices cost 150 yen, or just more than $1. On base, a loaf of bread costs less than $1. For 3.5 ounces of hamburger, the price at Marufuji is 98 yen, or 81 cents — about $4 a pound. The most expensive hamburger meat at Yokota costs less than $3 a pound. A head of red-leaf lettuce sells for 298 yen, or about $2.40 on the economy. That same vegetable costs less than $1.50 on base.

But some say smart shoppers can save money by buying off base for certain items.

Plus, the off-base stores carry items not found in the commissary, said an American shopping with his Japanese wife at the Jusco supermarket just south of Misawa Air Base, Japan.

“We’ve always shopped here to buy items we can’t get in the commissary, like certain Japanese-style soup bases, spices and vegetables,” said the man, who declined to give his name. “There’s a wonderful farmer’s market here that undercuts vegetable prices seen in the commissary.”

Hoarding supplies

Following the terrorist attacks, some stores reported dwindling supplies as people tried to hoard food items.

At Iwakuni Marine Corps Air Station, Japan, “there was more shopping following the terrorist attacks, however, it’s business as usual now,” said base spokesman Marine Sgt. Michael Wiener. He added base officials do not foresee a problem with food supplies running short.

During emergency conditions, such as typhoons or snow storms, some people have been known to try and hoard food items.

But Jack Younger, commissary officer at Misawa Air Base, said he has not seen instances of hoarding by shoppers in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“People were stocking up when the typhoon was headed this way (two weeks ago), (and) we saw a slight spike in sales.”

He said normal deliveries of groceries are continuing, and that a good supply of food is on hand in Misawa’s commissary warehouses.

Valene Harris, a military spouse and mother of four daughters, thought the effects of Typhoon Danas and the attacks in the United States would empty the commissary shelves.

She was expecting the worst. Neighbors who shopped the day the commissary re-opened after the bombings told her of customers loaded down with three carts of food.

“I bet it’s going to be empty,” she feared on her way to the store. “I was happy when I walked in the door.”

Karen Ochsner, Yokota commissary store director, said there were three or four days after the typhoon and attacks when “we suffered.”

One delivery — a few types of fruits and vegetables from the States — was canceled. Others have been delayed because of tight security at the gate. But products from the Japanese economy, and three extra vanloads of dry goods from the Defense Commissary Agency’s warehouse at Sagami Depot, have supplemented most shortages, Ochsner said.

“We’re pretty much back on track,” she said.

Okinawa commissaries were back to normal following two hits from Typhoon Nari and the heightened security concerns.

A check of several base supermarkets showed no shortages and no rush by consumers looking to stock up for another emergency.

“We’ve worked very closely with the bases to ensure we were able to get supplies from the (Naha) port to our central warehouse on Camp Kinser and into the stores,” said Pete Conrady, Okinawa Zone Manager.

“It was rough at first, coming out of what was, essentially, two typhoons and then going right into Threatcon Delta,” he said.

Back to normal

At the commissary at Camp Walker in Taegu, South Korea, buying habits were normal and stocks were full, said Yi Chae Kum, the assistant grocery manager.

But that wasn’t the case the first weekend after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Yi said. Then, the store saw a brief run on certain staples by shoppers trying to get a jump on what they feared would be shortages.

Canned soups, frozen foods including microwavable items, juices, some meat items and ramen noodles sold fast that weekend, Yi said. “Saturday, Sunday, they buy five or six” on an item instead of one, he said.

But the commissary promptly replaced the items with fresh deliveries from its warehouse, he said. “This week, they buy normal … it’s no problem.”

At the commissary at Camp Hialeah in Pusan, South Korea, there was a brief shortage of produce because of canceled air shipments out of the United States right after the attacks. But normal levels soon were restored once regular flights resumed, said store director James Mun.

“Now it’s back to normal and there’s no shortage or any impact to this store,” Mun said.

Wayne Specht, Jennifer Svan, David Allen, Franklin Fisher, Chiyomi Sumida and Jim Lea contributed to this report.

Back to September stories
Page Two news roundup
Stories from August, 2001
Stories from July, 2001
Stories from June, 2001
Stories from May, 2001
Stories from April, 2001
Stories from March, 2001
Stories from February,2001
Stories from January, 2001
Stories from December, 2000
Stories from November, 2000
Stories from October, 2000
Stories from August and September, 2000
Stories from June and July, 2000
Home