Asda encourages Peterborough shoppers not to buy more than they need in lockdown

Asda plan to increase the number of sanitising stations across their stores

Panic-buying became a big issue during the first lockdown in March, with many supermarket shelves cleared out of essentials such as toilet roll, eggs, sugar and pasta.

The Peterborough Telegraph saw evidence of these kinds of items once again running low on supermarket shelves on Monday (November 2) in the chain’s Rivergate store.

This came in the aftermath of the government’s announcement of a second national lockdown, coming into effect at midnight on Thursday (November 5) for four weeks.

Stocks of toilet roll were running low on Asda shelves on Monday (November 2)

Queues form outside some banks and stores in Peterborough as shoppers prepare for start of second lockdown

Asda has now moved to reassure shoppers that such panic-buying is not necessary and have also announced new safety measures they are implementing during the lockdown.

A spokesperson said: “Asda currently has good product availability in store and online and can reassure customers that they do not need to buy more than they normally would before or after the lockdown comes into effect.”

An almost empty egg isle in Asda in Rivergate on Monday (November 2)

The extra safety measuress that are being put in place include:

- Extending the hours of the 1,000 Covid Safety Marshals will be on duty at the front of every store from 8am to 8pm. These colleagues will be on hand to manage access, help customers with safety queries, and remind them of the need to wear a face covering and maintain social distancing when they shop.

- Positioning Covid Safety Marshals in the busiest sections of larger stores to manage footfall and help customers to maintain social distancing.

- Applying a protective antibacterial coating to all trolley and basket handles to prevent the spread of bacteria. The same coating is successfully used to kill bacteria in the NHS Nightingale Excel Hospital.

- Installing an additional 700 sanitisation stations at the front of stores complementing the 3,500 stations already in place. More sanitisation stations have been added within stores including a minimum of 10 in each superstore.

- All tills will be opened at the busiest times to reduce queues and speed up the checkout process for customers.

Roger Burnley, CEO and President at Asda, added: “Providing a safe environment for our customers and colleagues to shop and work has been our priority throughout the pandemic and we are stepping up the measures we have in store to provide additional protection.

“We would ask customers to play their part by respecting social distancing and shopping responsibly when they visit our stores.”