It’s estimated that thousands of turkeys, as well as other farm animals, drowned during the tragic floods in Southern B.C. in November, and as a result, stocks for the Christmas season could be an issue, even for places in the north.
Lakes District News spoke to a representative from Save On Foods, who isn’t expecting it to be a problem at the Burns Lake location. “At this point there is no impact to our turkey supply and we do not anticipate a shortage in Burns Lake ahead of Christmas,” the representative said.
According to Ray Bruce, manager at the Burns Lake Wholesale Club, they too are expecting turkey stocks to be okay for the holidays, at least at the moment. Though he noted that there may be shortages for certain sizes of turkeys.
Buy-low Foods in Houston isn’t quite as optimistic though.
“We expect that all grocery stores are limited in the number of turkeys that are available this year,” a Buy Low rep told Lakes District News. “The causes behind this are many, including reduced flocks coming out of the 2020 pandemic interruptions and the impacts of the heat dome that occurred in B.C. last June and July. The floods have also had some effect on the supply of turkeys for Christmas as a number of flocks were lost in the floods.”
The representative went on to say that the company recommends that consumers purchase their turkeys early. “Inventory levels in store are dynamic and change throughout the day, the best suggestion is to call the store directly to find out what stock levels are as you head out for your shopping trip,” they said.
Or, if you’re so inclined, a nice honey baked ham makes an adequate replacement.
Derek Feldmann, owner of Priestly Meats told Lakes District News that he’s already been getting a lot of calls about turkey availability. “I wouldn’t know where to find them either, I’ll just selling hams to everyone,”
As for all other groceries, stores in the area are receiving regular shipments of groceries once again, after having to alter supply routes due shortages caused by the floods.
READ MORE: Grocery stocks should be fine in Burns Lake
READ MORE: Grocery stocks replenished in Burns Lake
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Eddie Huband
Multimedia Reporter
eddie.huband@ldnews.net
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