Countdown alters opening hours nationally as shoppers push the limits

Wednesday, 12 August 2020

Supermarkets are urging customers to avoid stockpiling and panic buying.

One of the country’s two major supermarket chains is temporarily changing its opening hours nationwide to help ease the pressure after many shoppers rushed for the aisles on Tuesday night.

Countdown said all its stores would close at 9pm on Wednesday night and re-open at 8am Thursday, in line with the return to tighter Covid-19 restrictions. The hours would remain in place until further notice.

The chain has also put limits on the number of people allowed in stores and on items including toilet paper, face masks and tinned food to avoid stockpiling.

Social distancing, queue controls and increased sanitisation would also be reintroduced as would the company’s online ‘’priority assistance’’ service for vulnerable customers, its health and safety general manager Kiri Hannifin said.

Restrictions on the number of people depended on the size of the store, she said.

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Hannifin urged customers to avoid panic buying.

“There is no need at all for anyone to stock up. We have plenty of food and supplies for everyone, and we want everyone to shop as they usually would and consider others,” Hannifin said.

The new alert levels will be in place until midnight Friday, but supermarkets say they are prepared to extend this upon Government advice.

“We have done this before, and we can do it again.”

Foodstuffs was yet to confirm which products it had restrictions on but said no reusable bags could be bought into its 40 Auckland stores and customer numbers would be restricted in the wider Auckland area, with a one customer, one trolley policy.

The measures will be in place until midnight Friday, but the supermarket giants said they were prepared to extend this on Government advice.

A Farro Fresh spokeswoman said the Auckland speciality grocer was restricting pasta, rice, flour, tinned tomatoes and baking products to four per customer.

Farro Fresh was also prioritising essential workers.

Countdown and Foodstuffs said they were not prioritising access for emergency workers at this stage.

A Countdown spokeswoman said it was experiencing increased demand for delivery and pick up services and slots were filling fast.

Customers who could not physically go to the supermarket, or who needed its delivery service most, had priority access to delivery slots. If they had previously been approved for this service, they did not need to reapply.

Countdown is limiting customers to one pack of masks per person and a limit of three per person for flour, rice bags, pasta, canned baked beans and spaghetti, long life milk, frozen vegetables, toilet paper, paper towel, personal wash, hand sanitiser, paracetamol, household cleaner, period products, and baby formula.

There will also be a limit of six on wine and beer.

Soon after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made the announcement on Tuesday evening of the changing of levels following the four positive Covid-19 cases in South Auckland, people queued outside supermarkets around the country.

The 24 hour SuperValue supemarket in Clover Park, South Auckland, was full on Tuesday night.

Workers could be seen stocking the shelves as a steady stream of people came through.

Supermarkets’ online shopping sites struggled to keep up with demand.