NSW supply shortages affect McDonald’s, Coke, household items

Supply shortages could roll on for months as McDonald’s is forced to slash opening hours and Coke replaces bottles with cans due to a lack of lids.

Dire stock shortages are no longer limited to fresh food — with Covid-infected delivery drivers and international shipping disruptions wiping shelves clear of everything from pet food and Panadol to couches and cars.

Experts say shortages in goods, both big and small, are expected to worsen as the world “continuously stops and starts” and price gouging will become commonplace.

Fresh fruit and veg shelves lay empty in Woolworths Leichhardt.

Basics such as rice and ready meals were also flying out the door.

However, it’s not just human food affected – owners are also struggling to find meals for their beloved pets.

Finder personal finance commentator Kate Browne warned consumers to be “flexible” when looking for essentials because they no longer had the luxury of holding out for specific brands of goods.

“For pet food, there are whole shelves that are empty. We’ve seen some shortages in laptops and tablets … With PlayStations, there were big supply issues,” she said.

“Some of these products are sourced from other countries. We have supply chain issues and then delivery issues on the ground.

“As consumers we aren’t used to being able to wait. This is going to roll on for the foreseeable future.”

Carnivores in Double Bay might need to try a flexitarian diet, with the local Woolworths in short supply of meat.

The chicken section fared no better.

Ms Browne said the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission would be keeping “a very close eye” on prices but the watchdog can only act if the price hikes amount to unconscionable conduct.

Big ticket items like furniture and cars are also seeing wait times of up to nine months and are unlikely to ease in the foreseeable future.

“In Australia we’ve always been able to go out and buy whatever we want, but this is the new normal for now. Be flexible and plan ahead,” she said.

A pandemic hoarding favourite, toilet paper is once again out of stock in Aldi at Leichhardt.

“That culture of buying what you want whenever you want needs to be reset, it doesn‘t matter if you have the money or not.”

“In the fast-moving consumer area – watch out for smaller retailers and even people marking up heavily on Gumtree and Marketplace.”

Pet foods, including reptile delicacies such as crickets, are in short supply across Greater Sydney due to delivery delays in transporting goods from the shipping dock to the showroom

Even in pet stores such as PetStock West Gosford, food supplies are running low.

Fridges at PetStock at West Gosford were stripped of wet pet food and fresh dog rolls on Tuesday while shelves were also bare across the road at Bunnings with large gaps in the holding racks for wooden doors.

Staff said that timber building materials were coming in slower than usual over the past few months and paving paint for outdoor concrete was a rare commodity.

The consequences of Covid are being felt in hardware stores likes Bunnings in West Gosford, where stock of outdoor supplies such as pebbles is low.

A timber shortage has also seen racks empty of doors.

The consequences of the latest Covid wave are also impacting the supply of flatpack and pre-assembled furniture in home fitting stores like Fantastic Furniture in West Gosford.

“Normally we have about five to six deliveries a week and we’re already waiting on two for this week,” a staff member said.

“We can’t even tell customers when they might get some of their goods because we’re not sure at the moment.

“So many of our delivery drivers are out because of Covid. We bounced back after lockdown but now it’s like a different sort of challenge.”

Food shortages extended beyond supermarkets to fast-food chains, prompting KFC to redraft its entire menu while McDonald’s was forced to cut its operating hours after staff were exposed to Covid.

KFC in Green Square is one of the franchises forced to alter its menu due to the chicken shortage, echoing similar supply issues faced overseas.

Freight company Global Forwarding’s owner Enrica Centorame said she expects shortages “across the board” to continue for “at least another three months”.

“This is the worst it’s ever been. I’ve been doing this for 25 years and I’ve never seen anything like it,” she said.

“Coca Cola Amatil had shortages of lids for bottles and that’s why you’re seeing more cans at the supermarket. Luckily they have the resources to pivot like that.”

Leading economist Saul Eslake said shortages of imported small goods like stationary were being caused by Omicron’s attack on China – a country which continues to strongly pursue a zero Covid strategy.

Panadol and pain killers were in short supply at Chemist Warehouse in Double Bay as people prepare to ride out their Covid infections.

Shoppers are being urged to forgo brand loyalty amid the shortages.

“In the case of imported products, there are two other possible issues, such as supply chain difficulties in the importing countries. I would be surprised if there is much in Officeworks that isn’t imported,” he said.

“China is now getting Omicron cases and when they get cases, they very aggressively close everything down. Globally, there are still problems in shipping due to shortages of containers.”

FAMILIES STRUGGLE TO FILL TROLLEYS WITH BASICS

Sydneysiders are struggling to fill their trolleys with essential items and food for the family as critical shortages grip supermarkets across the state.

Parents are having to fork out extra money for expensive cuts of meat and seek alternative cleaning products for the household as grocery stores are stripped of supply.

Eva Akis visited Coles at Southgate Shopping Centre in Sylvania on Tuesday to shop for her growing young family, which she does almost every two days.

Eva Akis found no toilet paper, washing powder or tissues in her latest shop.

She said the standard pandemic items, such as toilet paper, tissues and paper towel, had disappeared from the shelves, but was surprised to find frozen meals and washing powder were all gone as well.

“I had to find alternatives to things. Washing powder was gone, so I looked at whatever was available and got washing liquid,” she said.

“All the hygiene products were gone, so I had to get some bacterial wipes. It’s frustrating, but it’s understandable.

“It was a mix of everything, but you couldn’t get things that were easy to cook like chicken nuggets and frozen goods. There was still fresh fruit, milk, yoghurt and expensive meat like eye fillet.”