“It’s Getting Worse” – Hoarding Panic Forces Supermarkets To Impose Buying-Limits
Panic hoarding food and supplies by British and American shoppers has surged in recent weeks, as social distancing policies enforced by their respected governments to flatten the curve to slowdown infections are leading to mass quarantines.
Consumers are stocking up on food and supplies, as they have no idea when the quarantines will end. They see the fast-spreading virus leading to increased cases and deaths, and this has triggered fear about a pandemic, leading many to stockpile nonperishables, wiping store shelves clean, prompting supermarkets and pharmacies in both countries to impose buying-limits on goods.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there was no reason for consumers to stockpile supplies. It has become evident that rising cases and deaths in the UK has led to mass panic.
Retailers call for ‘responsible shopping’ to quell panic buying
A source at the country’s top supermarket told Reuters, “it’s getting worse.”
Sainsbury’s, the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the UK, had to place restrictions on certain products to keep store shelves stocked. Tesco, another major supermarket in the country, told customers this week that they could only purchase two packs of dried pasta, toilet paper, and milk.
Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, and Lidl have all placed some form of buying restrictions on certain products while struggling to keep store shelves stocked.
“We are currently facing unprecedented challenges and uncertainty dealing with COVID-19,” Morrisons chairman Andrew Higginson, and its CEO David Potts said.
The same panic has swept across the Atlantic into the US for about a month. Supermarkets and pharmacies from coast to coast have placed purchase restrictions on water, toilet paper, hand sanitizer, medicine, and masks.
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