A SHORTAGE of bananas has hit UK supermarkets with Tesco and M&S among the stores to be impacted.
Pictures on social media have shown stores with empty shelves accompanied by a notice informing customers of shipment delays.
Tropical storms in the Pacific have left cargo ships stranded at ports which has led to the problem.
A sign at a Tesco store in Osterley in west London, said: “We are sorry that bananas are out of stock due to bad weather conditions. We are working hard with our suppliers to refill our shelves.”
It is unclear how many stores have been affected, but issues have also been reported at locations in Maidstone, the Isle of Sheppey, London, and Bournemouth.
Banana shortages have also been spotted at an M&S in Chichester, west Sussex.
Bananas typically come from Ecuador, the Philippines, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Colombia.
There have been six tropical storms reported across the South Pacific and Indian Oceans during the last days of February, which is believed to be the cause of the shortage.
In March last year, dozens of supermarkets including Tesco and Aldi were hit by banana shortages due to transatlantic storms.
