Supermarkets call on South Australians to stop panic buying of toilet paper

Supermarkets have called on South Australians to stop panic buying toilet paper, reassuring everyone there is plenty of stock to go around.

Supermarkets are being stripped of toilet paper as panic buying returns because of the latest coronavirus outbreak. Picture: William West

South Australians have been urged to stop panic buying toilet paper because of the latest COVID-19 outbreak.

Supermarkets have reassured customers they have plenty of the essential item in their warehouses to meet demand – providing people are not buying to hoard.

Shelves were being emptied as soon as they could be refilled as the State Government introduced fresh social distancing restrictions in the wake of the Parafield cluster.

Drakes director John Paul Drake imposed a limit of one packet per customer as thousands of toilet rolls vanished from his company’s stores.

“Everyone just needs to calm down,” he said.

“We don’t want to have to put limits on people but sometimes we just have to. There is plenty of stock to last for months if everyone just does the right thing and buys what they genuinely need.”

Romeo’s Foodland national marketing manager Alan Jones said the privately owned chain also had more than enough toilet paper.

“There is plenty of stock in our stores and in our warehouses so there is no need for people to worry,” he said.

“Customers just need to purchase what they require. We have got more than enough.”

Mr Jones said toilet paper was the biggest item being targeted – so far.

Before the first pandemic lockdown in March other goods such as pasta, rice, bottled water, sugar, flour, tinned tomatoes and eggs sold out, forcing supermarkets to introduce strict purchasing limits and changed shopping hours, giving priority to the elderly.

The SDA – the union for retail workers – is also calling for customers to keep calm in shops.

It said that during the first COVID wave, many retail workers were also victims of “rampant abuse and violence” by customers.

“According to a report by the National Retailers Association released in August, rates of abuse and aggression by customers increased by up to 400 per cent in some retailers during the first wave of COVID-19,” the union said in a statement.

“As South Australians prepare to stay home, the SDA is calling for all customers to remember to treat retail workers with the respect they deserve this time around.”

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