Customers told to ‘shop as normal’ as supermarkets begin restricting items

Morrisons became the first supermarket to re-introduce restrictions on key products this week. Picture: ARCHANT (Image: Archant)

It comes after pictures of empty shelves started to emerge on social media, amid speculation that panic buying would restart following the new coronavirus restrictions.

MORE: All you need to know about the new coronavirus restrictionsHowever, supermarkets and retail groups have been quick to stress they have not yet experienced shortages and are urging customers to “shop as normal”.

Morrisons became the first of the ‘big four’ to re-introduce shopping restrictions in its UK stores.

The supermarket has introduced a purchase limit of three items on a small range of products, including disinfectant and toilet roll.

Tesco has also introduced a limit on some key items in its stores. Picture: MARK LANGFORD (Image: Archant)

A Morrisons spokesman said: “We are introducing a limit on a small number of key products, such as toilet roll and disinfectant.

“Our stock levels of these products are good but we want to ensure that they are available for everyone.”

Meanwhile, Tesco has followed suit, introducing a three items per customer limit for flour, dried pasta, toilet roll, baby wipes and anti-bacterial wipes.

There are additional limits for a small number of products online, such as rice and canned vegetables.

A Tesco spokesman said: “We have good availability, with plenty of stock to go round, and we would encourage our customers to shop as normal.

“To ensure that everyone can keep buying what they need, we have introduced bul -buy limits on a small number of products.

“To help our customers shop safely, we will also have colleagues at the entrances of our larger stores to remind customers about the safety measures we have in place, including the legal requirement to wear a face covering.”

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