To reply to D. Tsakiridis: True. Too many of us don't even know how to cook from scratch, much less produce the ingredients. No need to panic though, we can adapt to what is available, (BTD and GTDers are used to adapting) and we can continue to buy local. At least in Utah we've had a good snowfall year and won't be hurting for water.

Thinking of food shortages reminds me of the first time I walked through a grocery store after it sank into my head that gluten was wrecking my health. Here I was, realizing that the foods I had relied on were no longer an option and a good 80% of what was available to buy was not available to eat. It was weird. I lived off rice cakes for a week. Now, even if I had to rely on what food I have stored, and what is produced locally, I know I can adapt to anything. I may tire of the sardines Amazon had on sale recently, but I won't panic.

Perhaps people will branch out into more variety in their diets. Perhaps they will come here to find out how to cook quinoa or amaranth... Is a corn shortage next? Adapt, don't panic.

Apparently in some stores, the only rice that can be bought is Basmati. Not too bad for gatherers, as it is a superfood grain.

What is the best approach though, to the food shortages we're seeing? The shortages started with wheat, then rice, and will probably affect other foods as well before the year is over. Of course we need to make sure we have enough for our families to eat, and take care to not waste any, since the shortages are worldwide.

A home garden is a great thing, if you have enough land you have many options, if you don't have much flat land, there are other options, like square foot gardening, container gardening and vertical gardening. So if there are some foods you don't want to be without, grow them! Not only are there shortages to worry about, but also food quality issues, like e. coli contamination and some of the other issues we've had with the food supply.

I need to practice what I preach though. I love to garden, but have trouble finding the time and space. I have a spot where I can put a 3X6 foot square foot garden, but I need to fix a sprinkler head and build the box, etc. etc. I did plant a few peas, which are starting to sprout, and a couple elderberry bushes (I hope they survive, they aren't looking great). I can also annex some of the side lawn to put garden boxes on...it's just a matter of actually doing it.