Shelves bare as supply chain crisis creeps into Queensland

The effects of a Covid-19 supply chain crisis have hit Queensland, with products disappearing from supermarket shelves.

The effects of a Covid-19 supply chain crisis have crept their way into Queensland with products disappearing from supermarket shelves in the South East.

While there’s no shortage of stock, supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths have cited logistic issues as the cause of delays in getting produce in stores as Covid-19 cases rise around the country.

Truck drivers have been forced into isolation as close contacts or with symptoms and the Transport Workers Union said they can’t get their hands on the rapid antigen tests that they cart around the country.

National secretary of the union Michael Kaine said empty supermarket shelves were a predictable outcome of tests not being prioritised for truck drivers.

A supply chain crisis has left meat shelves at Woolworths Buranda Village low on stock.

The union has heard from large transport operators working out of major Australia ports that between a third and half of their workforce are missing each day.

“We need to prioritise critical industries like transport,” Mr Kaine said.

“These tests are an important weapon in the fight against the virus, and without them, the virus is hitching a ride through transport supply chains, putting workers and the industry in danger.”

Coles and Woolworths supermarkets around Brisbane were evidently low on produce on Wednesday afternoon, particularly beef and chicken.

The mince shelves were bare at The Barracks Coles.

The mince fridge at The Barracks Coles was bare, while a sign on the meat fridges at Woolworths Newstead cited Covid-19 impacts as the cause of missing stock.

Woolworths Buranda also had multiple meat shelves without product and Coles Woolloongabba had less supplies of mince and chicken fillets than usual.

A supply chain crisis has left meat shelves at Woolworths Gasworks low on stock.

It's understood the issue is more widespread in New South Wales, with interruptions to supply chains only just beginning to impact South East Queensland stores.

While Covid-19 cases are expected to rise in Queensland, a Woolworths spokesman said the availability of items was expected to bounce back in coming weeks.

“While there are more gaps on our shelves than usual, we have enough stock coming through our network for customers to do a family shop,” the spokesman said.

“We know this is frustrating and thank our customers for their patience.

“As always, we ask customers to be mindful of others in their community and buy only what they need.”

The meat shelves at Coles Woolloongabba on Wednesday.

A Coles spokesman said their supermarkets were also working with suppliers and stakeholders to address a number of supply chain issues including availability of shipping pallets and transport capacity.

“We apologise to our customers if an item they wish to purchase is unavailable when they do their shopping, and our team are working hard to replenish our shelves as quickly as possible,” he said.

“We are also seeing an increased number of team members being required to isolate due to household exposure to Covid while they wait for test results.

“We are continuing to monitor team member availability across our business.”

Mr Kaine said he hoped the Australian government could prioritise rapid tests for transport workers who help keep Queenslanders fed.