Britain Urges Citizens to Stockpile Food and Water for Emergencies

The British government has called on citizens to stockpile drinking water and canned foods sufficient for three days, as part of a new campaign to enhance emergency preparedness amidst growing fears regarding the impacts of storms, climate change, cyberattacks, and threats posed by hostile states.

The "Be Ready" campaign, launched by the UK Cabinet Office, aims to encourage citizens to maintain supplies lasting 72 hours, reflecting increasing official concern over the consequences of the climate crisis, growing reliance on technology, and threats from hostile nations, according to the BBC.

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated that "unexpected events seem to be becoming more common," noting that the government has issued recommendations for households to keep a three-day supply of bottled water and canned food to handle potential crises such as war, cyberattacks, or natural disasters.

Burnham added: "This is not about causing panic, but taking sensible measures to ensure there is enough at home to help you get through any difficult situation."

For his part, British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said that Britain also needs to prepare for threats of "state-sponsored terrorism," including attacks that Russia or other hostile powers might launch against infrastructure relied upon by the population in their daily lives.

He added that terms like "hybrid warfare" and "grey zone threats" do not accurately reflect, in his view, the nature of what he described as "state-sponsored terrorism," explaining: "In the face of these threats, which are not hypothetical but real, and no longer occurring only elsewhere but increasingly happening here, we must intensify our efforts and seriously address strengthening the country's resilience alongside its national defense."

He continued: "It is extremely important that we ask families and businesses whether they are prepared, and whether they know how to act when facing daily challenges that may arise."

Previous Warnings
Last month, the UK National Audit Office warned that the country's food supply chain is at risk due to growing threats from cyberattacks and the climate crisis, noting that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs had not made sufficient efforts in recent years to enhance the supply chain's ability to withstand disruptions.

The guidelines recommend that citizens keep blankets and cash at home, along with a first aid kit, a flashlight with batteries, and an FM radio that can be hand-cranked. It also recommends storing 3 liters of drinking water per person per day, with additional quantities for cooking and washing.

The British government indicated last August that it would urge citizens to stockpile canned foods, but the "Be Ready" campaign provides more specific guidelines and is set to be supported by an advertising campaign across social media and radio.

London views maintaining three days' worth of supplies as a practical measure that families can implement, putting Britain in line with France, Ireland, and the Netherlands, which advise their citizens to take similar measures in preparation for serious disruptions.

British ministers chose to launch the campaign before the winter storm season, following a series of severe storms that hit Britain in recent years. In January, tens of thousands of homes in the Midlands, the South West, and Wales lost power after Storm Goretti, which brought wind speeds of nearly 100 miles per hour.

Concerns are also growing over the potential impacts of the El Niño phenomenon, which could make 2027 the hottest year on record, while causing unstable weather patterns affecting global food supplies and energy systems.

The publication of the guidelines coincided with the removal of 32 UK government websites from service, a precautionary measure following the discovery of a security vulnerability in the PHP programming language, used by millions of websites worldwide.

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre sent 50,000 alerts to institutions affected by the vulnerability, serving as a reminder of the extent to which modern societies rely on the internet and critical technologies.

In April 2025, Spain and Portugal experienced sudden power outages for several hours due to a cascade of failures caused by voltage instability in the grid. Approximately 55 million people were affected by the incident, considered the worst of its kind in Europe in recent years.

The British Defence Secretary said that citizens also need to consider how to deal with hybrid warfare attacks that Russia or other hostile countries might launch, including cyberattacks that could disrupt payment systems relied upon by businesses or lead to the collapse of supply chains.

The minister was speaking during a visit to a new tank gun factory in Telford, in the West Midlands. The factory belongs to the German company Rheinmetall and is part of efforts to accelerate rearmament to counter Russian military threats.

However, Streeting emphasized the necessity for the public to also be prepared for hybrid warfare and acts of sabotage that could disrupt vital services without escalating to open war.

The Royal Navy detected Russian spy ships monitoring pipelines and submarine cables connecting the United Kingdom with Europe and other regions, raising fears of potential targeting in the future, a step that would represent a significant escalation by Moscow.

European countries are intensifying warnings about the risks of sabotage acts that hostile states, particularly Russia, might carry out to cause disruption or directly threaten public safety.

Incidents that raised these concerns included the discovery of an explosive-laden drone near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig Airport in Germany in August, along with a series of explosions and fires at defense facilities.

Britain rarely launches similar public awareness campaigns, as governments, whether led by Labour or the Conservatives, are cautious about steps that could be accused of inciting panic.

The "Protect and Survive" campaign, launched in 1980, provided citizens with guidance on how to survive a nuclear war, including building shelters inside homes and keeping a 14-day food supply.