CENTRAL TEXAS (KXXV) — Central Texas is not holding back when talking about 'panic-buying' at local grocers.
Some Central Texans are taking to social media — one Facebook user writes,
"Tell the hoarders to stop panic buying everything."
— another user says...
"Really, Waco? Really the only thing you can hoard up is toilet paper? Seriously."
25News' Bobby Poitevint explored a local Walmart and H-E-B, and found empty spots on paper goods shelves.
Local economist, Ray Perryman with The Perryman Group, spoke to 25 News about the economic impacts of panic-buying.
"In the current situation, I think it's over-blown — making it difficult to maintain inventories and creating shortages for people," Perryman said.
"This dock strike, unless it lasts for a long time, is unlikely to bring any significant shortages right away."
He believes shoppers are having PTSD from pandemic-era problems, and thus the impacts could be worrisome.
H-E-B even weighed in, and told 25 News they regularly prepare for potential supply chain impacts.
In a partial statement, they said:
“We do not anticipate any customer impact from the port strike at this time. Our team has been working with suppliers for weeks to serve Texans. Most products are not impacted by this strike."
H-E-B added that toilet paper is made domestically and stores receive daily shipments.
25 News also reached out to Walmart for comment, but has not received a response yet.
