One of the biggest public concerns throughout the coronavirus outbreak has been whether essential food and household items will remain in good supply at supermarkets.

Despite supermarkets urging people to refrain from panic-buying and stockpiling, this hasn’t stopped consumers from going against advice in order to buy items in bulk.

In order to ensure that there is enough produce to go around, supermarket chains including Sainsbury’s, Iceland, Lidl and Tesco have been introducing measures at their stores, including offering a dedicated shopping hour to the elderly and rationing the sale of certain products.

Here is how supermarkets are responding to the coronavirus outbreak:

Dedicated hours for the elderly, vulnerable and emergency workers

Earlier this week, it was reported that an Iceland branch in Belfast was opening its doors exclusively to the elderly every morning, from 8am to 9am, so that they can do their shopping without having to worry about products being sold out before they arrive.

A Facebook statement about the shopping hour stated: “Could the wider public please respect this hour, and understand that this time is allocated for elderly people only. Iceland appeal to people’s better nature when realising who needs priority.” 

It has since been announced that several other Iceland stores are following suit, including in Hereford and Derbyshire.

Other supermarkets have also picked up on the initiative, including Lidl and Tesco in Ireland and Sainsbury’s, who said the dedicated hour at its stores is specifically for the elderly and people who are vulnerable.

“We will set aside the first hour in every supermarket this Thursday 19 March, for elderly and vulnerable customers,” said Mike Coupe, CEO of Sainsbury’s.

“We will also help the elderly and vulnerable customers access food online. From Monday 23 March, our online customers who are over 70 years of age or have a disability will have priority access to online delivery slots.”

On Thursday 19 March, Marks & Spencer released a statement online announcing it is setting aside the first hour of the day once doors are open for the elderly and vulnerable customers, in addition to NHS and emergency workers.

“Supporting our customers and communities during this difficult time is our number one priority,” the statement read.

The supermarket outlined that following this week, the elderly and vulnerable customers will be given a dedicated shopping hour at the start of the day on Mondays and Thursdays, while NHS and emergency workers would receive theirs on Tuesdays and Fridays.

“We ask our other customers to respect this request, as it’s the kindness and support we show each other that will get us through this.”

Rationing of essential food and household items

Despite retailers assuring consumers that they do not need to worry about stock of food and household items running out, this hasn’t prevented some from cleaning out supermarket shelves.

“Supermarkets are doing everything they can to ensure everybody has the food they need! Retailers have well rehearsed plans to get food into their stores,” the British Retail Consortium tweeted on Sunday.

“If we are considerate when we shop and help each other out, there is enough for everyone!”

In order to make sure that there is indeed enough to go around, some supermarkets, including Sainsbury’s, have started restricting the number of items people can buy in one go.

“I mentioned last week that we had put limits on a very small number of products. Following feedback from our customers and from our store colleagues, we have decided to put restrictions on a larger number of products,” Mr Coupe said.

“From tomorrow, 18 March, customers will be able to buy a maximum of three of any grocery product and a maximum of two on the most popular products including toilet paper, soap and UHT milk.” 

Asda has also announced that its customers will only be allowed to buy up to three items on all food, toiletries and cleaning products.

Furthermore, the supermarket chain will be closing its 24-hour stores from 12am to 6am ever morning to allow for restocking, and is closing its cafes and pizza counters to free up space in stores.

Restrictions have also been put in place at Aldi, where shoppers can now only buy four items of any product at a time.

On Thursday 19 March, Waitrose and John Lewis announced they would be limiting the sale of certain items.

Waitrose, which is part of John Lewis Partnership, stated that when purchasing certain products, customers would only be allowed to buy three items at a time, while only two packets of toilet paper can be bought in one go.

Urging the public not to stockpile

Retail giants, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda, recently signed an open letter appealing to the public to stop panic-buying amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“We know that many of you are worried about the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19). We want to let you know that we are doing everything we can so that you and your families have the food and essentials you need,” the letter from the British Retail Consortium said. 

The letter said retailers are “working closely with the government and our suppliers to keep food moving quickly through the system and making more deliveries to our stories to ensure our shelves are stocked”.

“We would ask everyone to be considerate in the way they shop,” it stated.

“We understand your concerns but buying more than is needed can sometimes mean that others will be left without. There is enough for everyone if we all work together.”

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