"Chewie, wait, wait, don't!"
You've been caught!
With your pants on the ground!
And you're out of toilet paper.
And you can't get anymore.
At least, not how
you'd normally go about getting it.
But toilet paper isn't the only thing you need.
There are five food groups.
But all you've got
are empty cupboards.
They range in size, and style,
and the type of goods they provide.
But, these are the places where most people
in developed countries get their food.
And they often get
much more than they need.
Grocery stores provide necessities,
but they're also designed to make money.
There is a science to the way that
grocery stores are laid out.
They entice customers to purchase
items they don't necessarily need.
And this explains why some grocery stores
stock as many as 45,000 different items,
while the average consumer only needs
about 300 items in their home.
For those tech-savvy,
computer wizards among you viewers,
yes, we know, you can do
all your shopping online.
But a world without grocery retailers
would have fewer grocery wholesalers.
The food you'd want would still exist,
but it wouldn't be as readily available,
because massive supply chains
will have been disrupted.
And even if you were willing to pay
a higher price for online groceries,
some of the items on your list,
like fresh produce,
would be harder to get.
Maybe you like to start your day
with a healthy dose of potassium,
or something sweet,
like a chocolate croissant.
Well, if you live in the U.S. or Canada,
for example,
you'd have to change your routine.
Bananas and cacao aren't grown there.
And with fewer
international exports and imports,
the goods we love from abroad
would be harder to obtain.
From now on,
most of the flavors you'd taste
would be much more domestic.
So while we wouldn't enjoy the convenience
or the variety we take for granted today,
we wouldn't be in a total crisis.
In fact, we'd probably live
healthier, happier lives.
And we'd save some money too!
For the items you couldn't get online,
you'd have to visit specialty stores
or local farms
to get your produce,
meat,
fish,
wheat,
and dairy.
While it would be incredibly time-consuming,
it would make you a smarter consumer.
You'd think more about what you need,
and wouldn't be as easily exposed
to impulse marketing,
like all that candy at the register.
You could also just start growing
your own fruits and vegetables.
Neighborhoods could establish
community gardens,
which have been proven to reduce crime
and would provide low-income families
with access to healthy food.
Community gardens also improve
local air and soil quality.
They increase biodiversity,
and they reduce neighborhood waste
through composting.
But if we're okay for food,
what about toilet paper and other necessities?
Okay, so toilet paper
you might have to buy online.
Or you could just take a shower
when you're done your business.
Or you could treat yourself and buy a bidet.
Who knows? It could be fun!
As for soap, you can make that yourself too.
All you really need is
So while we've proven that
we could survive,
and probably thrive without grocery stores,
making the change would
definitely be a hard adjustment.
We could probably build
happier and healthier communities
if grocery stores closed,
but we'd also have to adapt our tastes.
There are pros and cons to grocery stores.
One of the benefits is being able to taste
flavors from faraway places,
which we wouldn't be able
to access so easily without grocery stores.
Then again, grocery stores encourage
people to buy beyond their needs,
and spend beyond their means.
And the food that isn't sold goes to waste.
Now, while we might not see
a mass closure of grocery stores anytime soon
we can still learn from this WHAT IF
by thinking more about our shopping habits,
and becoming smarter consumers.
Grocery stores are a good reminder that
we all have the same needs.
So think harder about what you really need,
while considering other peoples' needs as well.
But if you think we're all big spenders now,
can you imagine how much more
we'd consume if humans were 5 m (16 ft) tall?
Well, that's a story for another WHAT IF.