Last modified on Fri 2 Apr 2021 07.10 EDT
During the six long days in which the Ever Given clogged the Suez canal, it is worth noting the sphinx-like calm that Britain retained over potential global backlogs of grocery supplies. “Coffee shortages ahead!” the experts warned. But we did not flinch. “Expect supply chain issues with toilet paper!” forecasters said. “Pffft … again?” we sighed while glancing wistfully at the Hadrian’s wall of Cushelle ultra-quilted three-ply we’d amassed in the last crisis.
On CNN, one analyst said, “Seven billion pounds of goods and food packaging are being ensnared in the tailback each day”, and it seemed as if there was no limit to the potential scarcity that shoppers might feel. I looked out of the window, craning my ear for the rumble of footsteps. In normal, pre-pandemic times, one might have expected panic to set in, for stampedes to head towards the pasta and rice aisles, or at the very least one public order offence in a Costco. But, no: Britain was not to be revved up.