UK delivery crisis to blame for food shortages in local stores

CoOp Grand Marche. Mark Cox, Chief Operating Officer Picture: ROB CURRIE

And while Mark Cox was confident shelves would remain well-stocked during the Christmas period, he said Islanders may find themselves with limited choice as suppliers struggled to bring a full range of products to stores.

Mr Cox echoed comments made by Steve Murrells, chief executive of the Co-operative Group, who said that post-Brexit migration rules and Covid-19 were causing the most significant food shortages he had known.

When asked how this was affecting the Channel Islands Co-op, Mr Cox said: ‘It’s an ever-changing situation, but I would agree with Steve. It’s the worst I have ever seen and the most challenging [supply problem] that I have dealt with in my career.

‘You have a combination of factors such as Covid and Brexit, which have caused labour shortages, both in terms of not being able to recruit staff and the wider ‘pingdemic’ issues of people being contact traced. You also have driver shortages. The UK is experiencing a shortage of roughly 100,000 lorry drivers.’

He added: ‘From our point of view it is something that is totally out of our control, and in the hands of our suppliers in the UK. We are seeing a reduction in the range [of food] available but the team is working extremely hard. We have switched to different suppliers where we can – when dealing with a shortage of crisps, for example – but I think what is being underestimated is the challenge in maintaining supply.’

Mr Cox sought to reassure customers that contingency plans were in place ahead of the busy Christmas period.

He said: ‘We are forward-buying and bringing in stock ahead of when we would normally do so, and working with the suppliers of our fresh produce to make sure that it is protected and available. Customers may not be able to see all the ranges and products they would usually buy, but there will still be sufficient levels of food available.’

A number of fast-food chains and restaurants, including McDonald’s and KFC, have fallen victim to the shortages in recent weeks, with the former announcing a lack of milkshakes and bottled drinks.

A spokesperson for Tesco, whose branded products are available locally from Alliance Tesco, confirmed that the chain was experiencing sporadic disruption as a result of the lack of HGV drivers. They said that, on top of increased demand, this had caused pockets of low availability across a small number of products.

Mr Cox said: ‘It’s clearly going to need some government intervention in the UK, particularly to help resolve the driver shortage. It really puts the scale of the problem into perspective when you have companies like Nando’s and McDonald’s with reduced levels of stock.’

Gerald Voisin, chairman of Voisins department store, said the supply chain issues were being seen across multiple retailers.

‘It is affecting us but our stocks are not as time critical,’ he said.

‘If something is two or three days late, we might not even know about it, whereas with food you might expect a delivery every day. This isn’t necessarily the case with our clothing range.’

He added that he was concerned about a rise in shipping costs as a result of Covid, which could lead to price rises.

‘That worries me more than the shortage of lorry drivers because if the cost of goods suddenly goes up by 20%, then that becomes an issue for us and our customers,’ he said.

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