Don’t Panic Buy, Tesco Boss Tells British Shoppers After New COVID Curbs

There is no need for Britons to panic buy groceries after the government imposed new restrictions to stem a second wave of COVID-19, the boss of Tesco, the UK’s biggest supermarket chain, said on Wednesday.
Prime minister Boris Johnson told the British people on Tuesday to work from home where possible and ordered restaurants and bars to close early to tackle a spike in the pandemic, with new restrictions likely to last six months.
That prompted speculation over whether there could be stockpiling, or panic buying, of groceries similar to that seen in March when supermarket shelves were stripped bare, leading to the rationing of certain items.
However, Tesco Chief Executive Dave Lewis said there was no need for this as food supplies were plentiful.
“We just don’t want to see a return to unnecessary panic buying because that creates a tension in the supply chain that’s not necessary. And therefore we would just encourage customers to continue to buy as normal.”