Supermarket chain Morrisons has become the first to ration some of its food due to low stock levels. Customers are now limited to buying two packs of peppers each, after new rules were introduced.
Unseasonably cold weather in Spain slowed down the growing of peppers, leading to Morrisons limiting purchases to two per customer. The two packs per customer rule has been rolled across every supermarket in the country, and all Morrisons shoppers will need to follow it.
The supermarket said it is hoping to lift the cap in the next week or so because supplies are improving. Waitrose, which has also been hit by supply problems, said it is working hard with suppliers to get a full range back on shelves and expects stock levels to stabilise in the coming weeks as the UK moves into its growing season.
British supermarkets source peppers exclusively from Spain during the winter months. British Retail Consortium director of food and sustainability Andrew Opie said: “Difficult weather conditions in the south of Europe disrupted harvest for some fruit and vegetables, including peppers.
"A few stores have implemented temporary limits on how much customers can buy to ensure availability for everyone. However, availability should improve for those impacted in the coming weeks as we enter UK growing season."
Supermarkets were forced to ration a range of fruit and vegetables earlier this year due to poor weather in Europe and Africa leading to shortages. Shoppers started seeing shortages of tomatoes on about February 20, with retailers saying a combination of bad weather and related transport issues in north Africa and Europe were causing significant supply problems.
The shortages spread to other products, leaving shelves bare of fresh produce items, including cucumbers, peppers and lettuce. Farmers also warned retailers were not paying enough to grow supplies, further impacting the number grown. Items like tomatoes were also affected by the cold weather in Spain, which also affected supply from Morocco.
In February, Lee Stiles, secretary of the Lea Valley Growers Association (LVGA), told the BBC: "The majority of tomatoes, peppers and aubergines are not going to be around in big volumes until May."
In the same month, a sign was left out in one Morrisons shop that read: "Availability across our tomato range has been significantly impacted by adverse weather conditions across Spain and Morocco. The current shortage is likely to improve within a couple of weeks."
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