Lavatory paper won’t run out – retailers say they’ll keep calm, stop exports and carry on

RETAILERS have urged shoppers to stop stockpiling and only buy what they need as gaps widen on supermarket shelves across the country.

The warning came as one expert insisted Britons would not run out of lavatory paper, despite a rush for rolls.

Dr Rebecca Harding, of data firm Coriolis Technologies, said the UK is a major exporter and would be able to keep supplies previously destined for other countries if there was a domestic risk of running out of the product.

The UK exported $129m (£103m) of lavatory paper last year and exports more than it imports. “As the world’s 11th-largest exporter of toilet roll, at least if our supply routes shut down, we will be able to keep calm, stop exporting and carry on,” Dr Harding said.

Supermarket chains have been limiting sales of a range of products such as pasta, antibacterial soap, cleaning agents, tinned goods and medicine.

“We are well-stocked. There’s enough food for everybody. The issue is people aren’t shopping normally, they’re buying more than they need,” a supermarket source said.

A smaller chain said the rationing is aimed at managing customer demand and not because of stock issues. It is meant to ensure that all shoppers have access to all products, it said.

Some supermarkets have started putting up signs on shelves to discourage bulk buying. Anecdotally, however, staff at the tills have been verbally abused by disgruntled cus- tomers after they were told off for buying too much.

John Allan, the Tesco chairman, and Iceland boss Richard Walker have both said this week the supply chains were well-stocked.

Separately, Morrisons said it would pay its small suppliers immediately to help with their cash flow as coronavirus weighs on the economy.

Smaller players typically do not have as much access to extra cash as larger companies. It also said that a further 1,000 suppliers, including local foodmakers and farmers, will receive immediate payments.

Morrisons has about 3,000 small suppliers, including 1,750 farmers, that will benefit.