Supermarkets bring in product limits as flooding hits supply chain

Woolworths has introduced purchase limits for a number of key products at stores across Queensland and northern New South Wales as flooding continues to impact supplies.

The supermarket giant already had limits in place across parts of Central and North Queensland but has now extended those across the entire state.

It will also cover stores at Ballina Fair, Ballina River Street, Byron Bay, Cabarita, Casino, Goonellabah, Kingscliff, Lennox Head, Lismore Central, Lismore Square, Mullumbimby, Tweed Heads and Tweed City.

Shoppers will be restricted to two packs of paper towels, facial tissues, flour, rice, long-life milk, fresh milk, mince, sausages, chicken breasts, chicken thighs and painkillers including paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin.

There will be a one-pack limit on toilet paper and bulk packs of still water.

“As floods continue to ravage the east coast, critical supply lines into northern NSW and throughout Queensland have been impacted by road closures, limiting how quickly we can get stock into flood-affected regions,” Woolworths Director of Stores, Jeanette Fenske said:

“To help ensure more customers have access to food and essentials, we’ve introduced product limits on select categories across Queensland and select northern NSW stores while we work through these disruptions.

“We have contingency plans in place and are doing everything we can to safely get stock into our stores via alternative road routes. We know the coming days are expected to bring more extreme weather as rain travels south and we will continue to monitor the situation closely, planning ahead for potential disruptions in NSW.

“We thank customers for their understanding and encourage them to be mindful of others in the community and only buy what they need.

Coles has also introduced purchase limits in a number of northern New South Wales stores including Ballina, Banora Point, Casuarina, Lismore, Murwillumbah, Ocean Shores, Tweed City and Tweed Heads.

It has limits on products in some Queensland stores but not on the Gold Coast at this stage.

Woolworths purchase limits Qld/Northern NSW

Two-pack limit