US coronavirus: panicked shoppers empty store shelves again as cases surge
- Paper towels and other cleaning supplies fly off the shelves amid a new wave of defensive buying
- Even the world’s biggest retailer is reporting shortages of household items despite companies expanding production lines
We’re out of toilet paper again.
Defensive purchasing is affecting everything from paper towels to bacon. Even the world’s biggest retailer is reporting shortages of high-demand items, including cleaning supplies, breakfast foods – and the most important commodity in any bathroom.
“It really does have everything to do with what’s happening with Covid-19 cases in any particular community,” Walmart’s chief executive officer, Doug McMillon, said on an earnings call in the past week.
“We’re going to be able to respond in this instance better than we did in the first half of the year, although we’re still – as a total supply chain – stressed in some places.”
The new wave of pantry stockpiling hits about eight months after the March boom, meaning makers of packaged food and household items have had some time to prepare. General Mills Inc. added 45 external production lines through contractors this year, while Campbell Soup Co. spent US$40 million to expand production of Goldfish crackers, a must for parents cooped up with toddlers. Still, at-home demand is surging, accelerated by a new wave of indoor-dining bans.