Are there food shortages in Arkansas?
In Newport, Arkansas, there don't seem to be any real food shortages nor anywhere else near my location.
With recent events happening around the world, I have been hearing a lot about Wal-Mart closures, and food scarcity. So, when I got the chance this weekend to go on a shopping excursion with my mom, we decided to check out the Wal-Mart Supercenter, Food Smart grocery, Dollar Tree, and Goodwill stores in Newport, Arkansas.
Nowadays I normally don't go shopping at brick and mortar stores very often, however I do particularly enjoy heading towards Newport, Arkansas when I do, for a bit of nostalgia.
Fun fact: Newport, Arkansas was the first place where Sam Walton first began his retail career in 1945.
The Wal-Mart Supercenter at 1211 AR-367 North Newport, Arkansas first opened its doors on August 14, 2013. Once upon a time, I made a point to shop at this location every Friday. It's been approximately five years since my last trip to Newport before this past weekend. So I wasn't sure what to expect after watching so many doom and gloom videos on YouTube about there being shortages everywhere.
Were there any shortages in Newport, Arkansas?
I am relieved to say that the Wal-Mart Supercenter in that area appeared to be doing well. There weren't any empty shelves at that store's location and the prices weren't too extreme.
Prices were somewhat higher on almost everything at every store we ventured to. However, the brick and mortar stores we shopped at were still much cheaper than ordering food and other supplies online for home delivery (online ordering is my norm).
The Food Smart grocery store is located at 805 Highway 367, North 3769
Newport, Arkansas. This grocery store also seemed to be well stocked with everything food and necessities related. (This was my first shopping experience at Food Smart so, I don't know what their prices normally were before inflation.) I found vine-ripened tomatoes on sale for eighty-eight cents there, along with bags of chicken legs just a little over three dollars. That wasn't too shabby! (This store was previously a Cash Saver and before that, it was a Price Chopper grocery store).
The only store where we came across any major shortages was at the Dollar Tree located at 2500 Malcolm Avenue suite b, Newport, Arkansas. The shelves were almost completely bare except for a few spring decorations and a few other goods like flip-flops and bags of potting soil.
I have to admit that was the most pitiful shape in which I had ever seen that particular store. I don't know if this Dollar Tree is having issues getting inventory or if people are hitting the store as soon as the shelves are stocked for cheaper prices. (Items at this store are 1.25.) I believe that about half of Dollar Tree products come from China and since China is on a massive lockdown due to Covid, this may be the reason that this store has shortages.
As for the Goodwill store located at 2500 Malcolm Avenue, Newport, Arkansas, their inventory usually varies. They appeared to have about as much used goods as far as normalcy goes for a thrift store. But even their prices seemed steep for secondhand goods.
In conclusion, I can say that prices everywhere I went over the weekend seemed to be somewhat higher. However, gasoline prices in Newport, Arkansas were down a few cents.
As far as food shortages go… in all honesty, I really didn't see any shortages anywhere except at the Dollar Tree. However, I did notice that there were a few name brand products that weren't in stock, and there were other brands (I haven't ever seen before) that were stocked.
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