Grocers across Nottingham say they are still full of produce despite supermarkets limiting the amount of fruit and vegetables shoppers can buy. On Wednesday, February 22, Tesco and Aldi became the latest supermarkets to restrict the sale of peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers, citing shortages due to extreme weather in Spain and north Africa.
It follows similar moves by Asda and Morrisons, with other supermarkets said to be facing problems as photos of empty shelves circulate on social media. Independent grocers in Nottingham that spoke to Nottinghamshire Live said everything was still available to their shoppers, but they were having to pay more.
Stephen Thompson, who runs Thompson Brothers greengrocers in Sherwood with his twin brother Andrew, said he still had a "shop full of food". He said: "We've got loads, there's no shortage here really.
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"We've got a shop full of food, there's no problem here. We had a man in yesterday who said he couldn't get tomatoes from the Co-op. People get into a tizz over things like that.
"There's no need to panic buy, prices will come down." Cherie Severn, manager at the Fruit Basket in West Bridgford, said the shop was having to pay "quite a bit" more than usual for items such as tomatoes and cucumbers.
"We are fine, everything's available. There has been bad weather in Spain and places like that but we've been able to get hold of things no problem, there's just been a slight price increase," she said.
"We're not like supermarkets who work on set prices. If people want it they will pay for it, there's been a little bit of an increase. For now it's sustainable, if it carries on it won't be but the prices will come down."
Aldi said the limits on fresh produce were being brought in to "ensure that as many customers as possible can buy what they need". The UK also gets some produce at this time of year from domestic growers, but farmers have cut back on their use of greenhouses to grow winter crops due to higher electricity prices.
Mr Thompson said the problem had largely been self-inflicted by supermarkets who chose to outsource from abroad instead of paying British farmers more for certain products. "If someone puts 20p on tomatoes who gives a damn? Nobody gives a damn," he said.
"There isn't a shortage, all they have to do is pay the prices, a bit like the eggs. The supermarkets think they are in control but it's the farmers. There's no shortage, there's lots of food there they just don't want to pay. It's self-inflicted."
On the national picture, Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium, which represents UK supermarkets, said: “Difficult weather conditions in the South of Europe and Northern Africa have disrupted harvest for some fruit and vegetables including tomatoes and peppers.
“While disruption is expected to last a few weeks, supermarkets are adept at managing supply chain issues and are working with farmers to ensure that customers are able to access a wide range of fresh produce.
“In the meantime, some stores are introducing temporary limits on the number of products customers can buy to ensure availability for everyone.”
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