Commerce Ministry Advises Reasonable Emergency Stockpiling, Not Hoarding

The Department of Trade Policy and Strategy releases a checklist of essential items for emergencies, advising the public to stock up reasonably without panic, to reduce cost burdens and the risk of shortages — 'be prepared but do not hoard.' Director-General Nanthaphong Jiralekphong of the Department of Trade Policy and Strategy, Ministry of Commerce, reveals that the world currently faces risks and uncertainties in many dimensions, including geopolitical conflicts, natural disasters, cyber threats, and utility system failures. This has led many countries to advise their citizens to stockpile food, drinking water, and essential items, to the point where some may understand it as a warning of a severe crisis. However, such measures are merely standard risk-management guidelines to allow the public to be self-reliant in the initial phase when an emergency occurs, not a warning signal to rush into hoarding goods.

Revealing the facts behind why many countries advise stockpiling essential items. Emergency preparedness guidelines have gained importance in many countries. For example, the United Kingdom launched the 'Be Ready' campaign on October 22, 2026, a three-year campaign urging the public to stockpile food, drinking water, and essential items to cope with electricity, water, and communication system failures. The Netherlands published an English-language emergency preparedness guide on November 25, 2025, aiming to make the public self-reliant for the first 72 hours. Ireland launched the 'Be Emergency Ready' campaign on August 28, 2026, advising stockpiling essential items as appropriate. Austria recommends households stockpile essentials for 10–14 days to cope with widespread power outages.

In addition, the European Union (EU) announced the Preparedness Union Strategy on March 26, 2025, to elevate crisis management across all dimensions, including natural disasters, public health crises, cyber threats, and security. Japan emphasizes stockpiling food and water for at least three days up to one week to cope with large-scale disasters, along with checking residences and evacuation routes. These guidelines have been released at different times, reflecting that stockpiling essential items is a routine preventive measure for dealing with various types of crises.

Should Thailand worry? Assess risks before stockpiling. Thailand has advantages in biodiversity and abundant natural resources as a major food producer, including rice, vegetables, fruits, meat, and seafood, coupled with continuous government development of the agricultural sector and food security. Therefore, the risk of food shortages is low. Furthermore, Thailand has infrastructure in logistics, warehouses, distribution centers, and distribution channels covering all regions, along with the growth of e-commerce businesses and the application of automation and AI in the business sector, which help enhance warehouse management and product distribution, reflecting strong potential in production and delivery to meet domestic consumption continuously.

However, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation announced on November 2, 2026, that although Thailand is not directly in the group of countries facing such risks, advance preparation such as readying an emergency bag is considered a good practice for basic household risk reduction, while the government and relevant agencies have integrated contingency plans for emergency situations in all dimensions to create maximum confidence and safety for the public. Stock up reasonably, reduce household burden.