NPR

Empty Grocery Shelves Are Alarming, But They're Not Permanent

The sudden spike in demand driven by the coronavirus pandemic has meant shortages at many stores. But retailers say products will return to shelves and urge customers to not panic or hoard items.
A person shops in front of the empty shelves in the deli section of a Walmart Supercenter in Nashville on Saturday.

At a Safeway in Washington, D.C., this week, 19-year-old Tala Jordan was having trouble checking items off her shopping list.

Fresh meat: Nope. Milk: Nope. Eggs?

"I got liquid eggs instead," she said. "Had to compromise somehow."

Jordan was shopping for a family of four — her sister, mom and grandmother. And

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