What things would disappear from the grocery stores early on in a disaster situation? Statistically –Strawberry pop tarts more so than other pop tarts. What makes me think that? One place that I and most other folks shop at is Wal-mart. When you buy something, the home office of Wal-mart knows within 15 minutes of check out what all you have purchased. That is why when there is a hurricane forecast to make land fall, Wal-Mart will have extra Strawberry pop tarts shipped in to the area. Other things that are in high demand include Bottled Water, pasta, rice, beans, canned foods [soups, veggies, and fruits]  bread, butter, milk, cereal, beef jerky, cooking oil, soft & sports drinks, nuts, pickles, dried fruit, salt & spices, sugar, crackers, cookies, power bars,  candy, dehydrated entrees, drink powders, peanut butter, jelly, treats, salsa, ramen noodles, toilet paper, baby formula, baby food & diapers, and pet food. As an area begins to recover, IF the local Wal-Mart is still standing, all of that will be restocked along with fresh- fruit, vegetables and meats. Some of the items not included above, yet in very high demand are tea, coffee, alcohol and tobacco.  The last four items are good for trade if you don’t use them. And I would strongly suggest that if you do, that you should get off of it as soon as you can. They are addictive and in the case of alcohol un treated withdrawal is FATAL in 60% of the cases. That was the statistic when I used to work in a hospital based substance abuse treatment center.