Countdown lifts limits on 'Covid items'

Saturday, 22 August 2020

Countdown supermarkets are lifting purchase limits on in-demand “Covid items.”

New Zealanders have been rewarded for keeping their cool at the supermarket during the country’s latest coronavirus outbreak.

On Saturday, Countdown announced it was lifting all purchase limits on in-demand “Covid items,” including flour, toilet paper, face masks and tinned food.

The limits were introduced along with altered opening hours on August 12, after Auckland moved to alert level 3 and the rest of the country went to alert level 2.

Countdown general manager of corporate affairs, safety and sustainability, Kiri Hannifin, said putting the limits in place was the right call to help curb demand but Kiwis had shopped responsibly and they can now be lifted.

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“When the changes in alert level were announced, we put the product limits in place to help prevent panic buying and to make sure there was plenty for everyone,” she said.

“While we did see some initial rush for the Covid-19 staples, customers have done a great job of only buying what they need, so thank you,” Hannifin said.

Hannifin said Countdown had seen massive differences between Auckland’s regional lockdown and the nationwide level 4 lockdown earlier this year.

“Kiwis have adapted to the different alert levels remarkably well – they are shopping normally, looking out for each other and our team, and are taking the safety measures we’ve got in place really seriously.”

The early rush for essentials prompted calls for calm, including from flour producers after shelves were stripped of the pantry staple during New Zealand’s first lockdown.

Andy Worrill, secretary of the Flour Millers Association, said although there was plenty of flour to go around, purchase limits would help smooth distribution.

Under normal circumstances, retail flour accounts for less than 10 per cent of all flour in New Zealand.

About 225 thousand tonnes of flour is produced each year but most of it is distributed in bulk form in tanker trucks or rail and sent to bakeries, where it's made into bread.

During the previous lockdown, flour supplies were prioritised and maintained to those bakeries to make sure bread was getting to supermarkets, Worrill said.

However, there was plenty to go around and manufacturers had procedures in place to make sure flour was available at any alert level.