evidence: Images of empty shelves, people fighting over toilet roll and long lines of people waiting to enter supermarkets have circulated on social media in recent days. Britain's leading food retailers met on Monday to work on contingency measures in the wake of the spike in demand. Shelves have been repeatedly emptied of nonperishable goods, leading the British Retail Consortium to publish an open letter. [...] So, the overwhelming message to consumers is: Don't panic. In these strange times we all suddenly find ourselves in, supermarkets have become more than places to buy food in. They are now beacons of normality in an increasingly surreal world. If consumers continue to behave normally in them, it ought to stay that way.