Demand for water and canned goods surges in Britain after government campaign — The Guardian
In the United Kingdom, after the launch of the government’s Be Ready campaign, shoppers began buying bottled water, canned goods and hand sanitiser more often. The campaign urges households to prepare for disruptions to critical services, including due to cyberattacks or extreme weather events, lasting up to three days.
Sales of essential goods increased
According to The Guardian, over the 10 days after the campaign began, sales of hand sanitiser rose by 83% compared with the same period last year. Sales of bottled water increased by 67%, while sales of canned and jarred food products rose by 37%.
The number of people buying canned meat every day increased by 43% — approximately 400,000 more shoppers daily. At the same time, the typical quantity purchased remained at about 500 grams, which analysts say indicates not mass stockpiling but the addition of essential items to a regular weekly shopping basket.
Analysts do not see panic buying
Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel by Numerator, said shoppers had paid attention to the government’s recommendations, although fewer than one-third of households bought bottled water in October. According to him, the increase was driven by people who purchased the recommended items, rather than those filling their trolleys with large stockpiles.
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A separate Barclays study showed that 27% of respondents had already stockpiled, or were considering stockpiling, food and drinks. Among people aged 18 to 34, 31% said they had enough food and drinking water for at least three days, while 53% of respondents aged 55 and over said the same. Shoppers also bought batteries, flashlights, hygiene products and medicines more often.
Food prices accelerated again
Worldpanel by Numerator’s research also recorded an acceleration in food inflation to 2.6% in the four weeks to 1 November, compared with 2.5% a month earlier. At the same time, total sales by British grocery retailers rose by 2.2% year-on-year in October.
Ocado sales rose by 12.3% in the 12 weeks to 1 November, and the company’s market share reached a joint record level of 2.3%. Lidl increased sales by 6.6% and overtook Morrisons to become the country’s fifth-largest grocery retailer. Asda was the only major chain to report a decline in sales, down 0.5%.
