Covid, flooding impacts leads to empty North Queensland supermarket shelves

Coles and Woolworths were feeling the pinch to keep stock on shelves of their NQ stores but were upbeat after some recent changes.

BARE supermarket shelves are greeting Townsville’s shoppers as businesses struggle with supply chain issues created by the Covid-19 pandemic and flooding in the Wide Bay region.

Australia’s two major supermarket players, Coles and Woolworths, have sought to assure their North Queensland customers that they would keep the shelves stocked, despite the challenges they faced.

The shelves were emptied in the meat section of the Coles supermarket in Idalia. Picture: Chris McMahon.

A Coles spokesman said the recent increase in Covid cases had forced more people to isolate, impacting on the availability of labour throughout the food supply chain.

They welcomed the state government’s decision on Sunday to exempt essential workers in the food production and logistics sectors from requirements to isolate if they were close contacts of someone who tests positive to Covid.

“At a time when inventory levels were already reduced in the post-Christmas period, our distribution centres are receiving fewer inbound deliveries and we have fewer team members available to process and dispatch stock to our stores,” the spokesman said.

“Meanwhile demand is elevated as customers choose to eat more meals at home to reduce their exposure to the rest of the community.

The shelves were emptied in Coles Idalia. Picture: Chris McMahon.

“The new measures, which are subject to stringent safety protocols including the use of rapid antigen testing, will allow us to deliver more of the food and essentials our customers need to our stores across Australia.”

While flooding in south east Queensland had also delayed the arrival of stock, Coles was pleased to confirm that roads had reopened and deliveries were on their way.

To help manage demand, temporary purchase limits were introduced for mince, check breast, chicken thigh, sausages and rapid antigen tests.

A Woolworths spokesman said deliveries to North Queensland were delayed by railway closures due to flooding, and supply chain disruptions created by Covid-19 absences - over 20 per cent in distribution centres and over 10 per cent in stores.

Townsville Woolworths stores have struggled to keep certain items on their shelves. Picture: Evan Morgan

“Our teams are working hard to ensure stock is delivered as soon as possible, but customers will find that stores have reduced availability of stock,” the spokesman said.

“We’ve re-routed our deliveries via road and expect to have trucks arriving at stores across the region over the next 24-48 hours.

“We know this is frustrating and thank our customers for their patience. Our thoughts are with all communities who have been affected by flooding across Queensland.”

As a temporary measure, Woolworths will be activating substitutions on all online orders.

Originally published as Covid, flooding impacts leads to empty North Queensland supermarket shelves