Coronavirus: New measures at Coles, Woolworths rolled out

Australian supermarkets will roll out new measures to ensure social distancing stays in place, with security guards to be seen in the aisles.

Security guards, counters and strict queue limits are expected to come into widespread effect over the Easter weekend, as part of social distancing measures across the country.

Coles will restrict customers to 110 people in its smallest store and 275 in its largest, A Current Affair reports.

Woolworths will restrict customers depending on the size of the shop, while Aldi will range from 70-100 people per store.

Coles’ Chief Operating Officer, Matt Swindells told the program people should bring a list and shop quickly while maintaining their distance.

“We have to keep Australians fed, and we understand our role in society… it is a safe environment a supermarket. It’s never been cleaner, you can still shop, but it’s all about minimising contact and risk,” he said.

Claire Peters, managing director of Woolworths said Easter is the second busiest trading period and they want to keep customers safe.

“In this current crisis, we have doubled our amount of hours in cleaning and particularly in the amount of those customer touch points,” she said.

Supermarkets have been a major focus point of the coronavirus pandemic, with panic buying stripping shelves and leading to fights among staff. Now that stock levels are returning to normal, people are urged to maintain social distancing and not to hoard items.

Originally published as Coronavirus: New measures at Coles, Woolworths rolled out