British supermarket supply issues improving but there will still be a little while to wait for pork pies…

Wednesday 24th March 2021 | MIKE SMITH

The latest update from Overseas Supermercados Spain over supply problems caused by customs delays after the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union is more positive after significant issues since the start of the year.

In a statement on its Facebook page, it has reported that a lot more trucks which have been held at customs have been cleared, although there are still vehicles awaiting clearance that have been held since January. In the last 14 days, a total of 55 trucks have arrived at the Overseas warehouse in Benissa, with another 25 expected next week. To put that into context, just ten trucks made it during the whole of February.

Overseas reports that their freezers are almost back to normal whilst dry goods are arriving into store on a daily basis with a wide range of products and it is confident that customers will see a massive difference compared to a month ago, and that it will continue to improve. However, it is the issue with chilled goods that are proving to be most difficult to resolve due to the shelf life of the product, especially for pies and cooked meats. It has added a range from Ireland to improve availability but there will still be a little while to wait for pork pies, etc. However, the Overseas staff are working on it.

The company assures customers that the future is looking better and it has learnt a lot over the last few months and continue to learn day-to-day about the necessary processes and legislation (with more legislation due to come into effect on April 21st). It is looking at ways of getting stock into their stores a lot quicker and Iceland have agreed to open a depot in Ireland which will remove all the processes and legislation which have been brought in as a consequence of Brexit. The company is also building a new warehouse at their head office in Benissa which will allow it to hold more stock of high turnover lines.

Ultimately, it is the aim of Overseas Supermercados to get the full range back into their stores, to get the highest turnover products in and then work on the rest of the range, such as flavoured water, decaf teabags, etc. It is confident that it will be able to offer a range which caters for everyone within the next few weeks.

See the Overseas Supermercados Facebook page for the full statement and explanation of the current situation, especially with regards to Pork Pies, Pet Food and Easter Eggs.

Information Source
Press Release – Facebook: Overseas Supermercados Spain