Dive Brief:

• Jacksonville, Florida-based Southeastern Grocers is advising customers to begin preparing for an active hurricane season this year in the Atlantic, according to a press release. The parent company of Winn-Dixie and Fresco Y Mas recommends shoppers pick up essentials like a three-day supply of water, non-perishables, extra batteries, first aid kits and more. 

• The grocer is also recommending that customers look over the American Red Cross’ hurricane safety checklist to make sure they have a sufficient amount of non-perishables and water, as well as medications, prescriptions and baby supplies. 

• There have already been three recent storms that have impacted areas in the Southeast, including Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and the Carolinas.

Dive Insight:

Experts are saying this year’s hurricane season will be the busiest in recent history. Forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predict there will be 13 to 19 named storms, of which three to six could evolve into Category 3, 4 or 5 hurricanes. The hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. 

Tropical storm Cristobal made landfall in Louisiana on Sunday, prompting the governor to order to evacuations and declare a state of emergency. Heavy rain and possible tornadoes are also threatening the Midwest as a result of Cristobal.

Because Cristobal’s effects weren’t expected to be catastrophic in areas where major grocery chains are located, companies have not yet had to make major changes to their operations.

In addition to Southeastern Grocers, other food retailers in the Southeast, including Publix and Kroger, have hurricane-preparation lists on their websites.

Grocery stores play a critical role in communities during severe weather events. Before a major hurricane, retailers will often deliver food and water to emergency responders and evacuees. When Hurricane Florence bore down on the eastern U.S. in 2018, grocers like Target and Food Lion said they were working closely with vendors to receive extra shipments of popular items like water and batteries in order to improve product availability.

Grocers also play a crucial role getting communities up and running again after hurricanes hit. Following Hurricane Harvey in 2017, H-E-B deployed mobile kitchens, water trucks and other disaster relief measures to local communities. The chain staffs a director of emergency preparedness, who told Texas Monthly in 2017 that the chain closely monitors weather patterns that could impact Texas. 

"Every day there’s a report that we monitor that shows us what our risks are and what’s happening in the Atlantic that could be a threat to the state of Texas," Justen Noakes told the magazine. "We were watching Harvey the week before it actually formed."