Some Readers Are Stocking Up to Prepare for Tariffs. Here’s What They’re Buying.
The New York Times
We asked, you answered: These are the food and drink items you’re buying in bulk.
It started with an anecdote from a Cooking editor: A relative had bought four bottles of Cognac in anticipation of higher tariffs on imported goods. The story got us wondering. With inflation rising again in January and the Trump administration’s ongoing threat of tariffs, what might Food and Cooking readers be stocking up on?
More than 250 readers responded to our query, many mentioning the same products and expressing at least some anxiety about their long-term availability or cost. Here are the items that came up again and again.
Whether you believe America runs on Dunkin or oat milk lattes, coffee was the most frequently mentioned item overall. (No surprise there: Consumption in the United States hit a 20-year high in 2024.) Linda Wheeler in Dayton, Ohio, said she had bought “six pounds of coffee beans and vacuum containers to store it,” while Josh Orter in Brooklyn said he had begun stocking up on another key element of their coffee-making ritual: Minor Figures barista blend oat milk “because it’s made in Canada, as many/most premium oat milks are.”
Despite an 11th-hour deal to delay 25 percent tariffs on Canadian goods, more than 30 respondents said they were still stocking up on maple syrup from our neighbors to the north, which, according to the Maple Syrup Producers association of Quebec, can last for years if unopened, especially if bottled in glass containers. Freezing an opened container of maple syrup can also extend its shelf life.
