Superstore reveal fears over stockpiling perishable foods
BY HOLY WILLIAMS reporters@dailyrecord.co.uk TESCO have become the latest supermarket to warn over stockpiling as grocers ramp up contingency plans for a no-deal Brexit.
Chief executive Dave Lewis said ensuring uninterrupted transport of fresh food across borders was the “single biggest challenge” for supermarkets if the UK crashes out of the EU without a deal.
He said the group were making contingency preparations for a no-deal scenario but were still in “wait and see” mode until the outcome of talks becomes clearer.
He said: “The biggest single challenge will be in a no-deal scenario and what happens with fresh food.
“The possibility of stockpiling fresh food is very, very limited.”
He stopped short of confirming if Tesco were actively stockpiling but said it was a possibility with dry food.
He added that plans to ensure fresh food transport is not held up is “where all our attention will be in the lead-up” to Brexit, with contingency planning stepping up after Christmas if a deal is still not struck.
The comments come after German discounters Aldi said on Monday that they had considered stockpiling food as part of their preparations for Brexit.
Aldi’s UK boss, Giles Hurley, added that their increased fresh food range would make this more difficult.
Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab said in July that the Government were making plans to secure food supply in the event of no deal being struck.
But he said it was “wrong to describe it as the Government doing the stockpiling”, indicating that industry would need to take the lead.