Fear-based consumerism is emptying shelves in the Okanagan and across the province as some people have begun stockpiling goods due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thatsa国际传媒檚 according to Eric Li, a UBC Okanagan researcher who studies market trends and human reactions to them.

Despite assurances from the provincial government that there will be no shortage of goods, Li said sa国际传媒減anic buyingsa国际传媒� is leading to several issues in terms of availability and affordability.

sa国际传媒淗aving five years of stock at home is not reasonable sa国际传媒� and it might not be ethical,sa国际传媒� he said.

Li recalled a similar panic during Japansa国际传媒檚 2011 nuclear meltdown in Fukushima. Rampant false rumours spread on social media lauding salt as a cure to radiation poison, Li said. Soon enough, the shelves were empty, much like Okanagan grocery stores are now.

sa国际传媒淚ncidents like this create panic among consumers,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒淭hey worry about if all the shops shut down or the supply chain shuts down.sa国际传媒�

That over-consumerism, as Li sees it, is much the same now as it was in Japansa国际传媒檚 2011 disaster.

The shelves of B.C. grocery stores are being cleared of essential goods: toilet paper, canned foods, cleaning supplies and even meats. Medical supplies have also been hard to get ahold of over the past few months with shops quickly selling out of masks and hand sanitizer.

Social media, with an even stronger grip on peoplesa国际传媒檚 attention now than in 2011, certainly isnsa国际传媒檛 helping either.

Li said people should think critically about the information sa国际传媒� and potential misinformation sa国际传媒� they consume related to COVID-19.

sa国际传媒淎 lot of us who are being greedy have the capability to analyze the reliability of that information,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒渟a国际传媒橧s that really true? Is that really (in my location)?sa国际传媒�

With the mass-information coming in showing panic and quarantine across the world, itsa国际传媒檚 natural to want to buy a little bit extra but everybody needs to have the opportunity to stock up, said Li.

sa国际传媒淧eople want to protect themselves and thatsa国际传媒檚 a very reasonable move,sa国际传媒� said Li. sa国际传媒淏ut when we talk about extreme overstocking behaviour, that is problematic.sa国际传媒�

And that problem shows itself, Li said, in the emergence of a black market, full of people capitalizing on the chaos, selling toilet paper and other goods at incredibly inflated prices.

This limits availability, resulting in some people not being able to get their hands on a single square of toilet paper.

If grocery stores arensa国际传媒檛 able to maintain stock, black market items could become a hot commodity, with prices Li estimates could be ten-fold what they are now.

READ MORE: Donsa国际传媒檛 flush disinfecting wipes down the toilet: City of Kelowna

READ MORE: Kelowna International Airport expects traffic volume to drop by 50 per cent

michael.rodriguez@kelownacapnews.com
Like us on and follow us on .