Anna Kola
Over the past week, consumer demand for salt and now for matches has grown significantly. What is happening in Ukraine seems to be experienced in Soviet times
the public is reminded of insecurity when there was a shortage of goods in shops or limited sales.
Laila Vārtukapteine, Commercial Director of the Elvi chain of stores, comments on the situation as follows: This situation is no exception. Presumably, this can be explained by the public’s collective memories of a time when there were indeed no goods in stores, and at a time when there is so much talk of fake news, it may be hard to believe what the trade industry is saying. deficit is not expected in the near future. “
Why the most popular product at the moment is salt, although there is no answer for shopkeepers. Iluta Čudarāne, a member of the board of the store “Ozolaine” in Raucuma parish, Auciems, says: We also buy a lot of sugar, large packages of barley groats, pearls, soda, these goods are also bought in our store. ” I.Čudarāne emphasizes that the lack of salt on store shelves is a temporary phenomenon, the suppliers promise to restore the store’s reserves in a week or two. When asked which type of salt is bought the most, a member of the company’s board answers that in the beginning it was boiling, coarse salt, but now it is buying out any product and type of salt. Ozolaine’s assortment includes salt from various manufacturers, and buyers do not care much whether it comes from areas currently affected by the war or not. “It seems that this is such a mass psychosis, because there is no indication that the supply of salt in our country could suddenly stop,” says I. Čudorāne.
In turn, the food store “Edgars” in Amata region of Drabešu parish can still provide its customers with matches. The salt was bought out. “It simply came to our notice then. We had different types of salt in the store, but we bought everything – both coarse and fine. At the moment, the store’s stocks are also empty, but we have ordered and are waiting for the goods to be delivered, “comments Diāna Ungure, a representative of the store” Edgars “. However, she mentions that other products are not in demand in the store at the moment – neither cereal products nor canned food can compete with the current popularity of salt.
Liene Dupate-Ugule, Head of Communications at the Maxima store chain, says: “What is happening in Ukraine has shocked each of us, and Maxima is following developments closely to provide support to colleagues, especially those with relatives and friends in Ukraine; provide practical assistance to the Ukrainian people, for example by donating goods and providing support to local refugee reception services. At the same time, we continue to take care of the continuous availability of goods in Maxima stores, as the situation has affected people’s shopping habits, more precisely, the content of the shopping cart has changed slightly. ”
She admits that products with a longer shelf life are bought more than usual, such as pasta, buckwheat, porridge, canned food, sugar, including salt. There is a particularly high demand for coarse or rock salt, which is sold out much faster than usual in some Maxima stores. “The main reason for this increased buyout is the rapid development of events in Ukraine, which, however, has disrupted supplies from the country’s producers. Colleagues are working hard to replenish the store shelves, gradually adding salt to stores from other suppliers, but it must be admitted – people buy it very quickly, taking significantly more packaging than necessary, so we encourage people to stay calm and buy small spare parts. It should be emphasized that there is no reason to worry, supplies will gradually return to normal and in the near future salt will be delivered to all Maxima stores in the required quantities, ”explains L. Dupate-Ugule. It should also be noted that Maxima stores offer different types of salt, such as fine, Himalayan salt, provided by partners from other countries outside Ukraine, such as Italy, Spain and Pakistan, so there are different alternatives to this product, as well as colleagues are currently actively working to take preventive care of other options, ”said a representative of Maxima.
“With the escalation of the situation in Ukraine, often influenced by unverified information, such as on social networks, the population is buying more salt, but we want to reassure buyers and call for peace for all of us in these difficult times. There is no reason to worry about a lack of salt or matches. Our suppliers have confirmed that there are enough stocks of salt and matches, and after a short-term increase in demand, additional stocks will be delivered to our warehouse in the near future to be delivered to stores as soon as possible, ”said Inga, a spokeswoman for Rimi. Bite.
Laila Vārtukapteine, Commercial Director of SIA “Elvi”, also agrees that the demand in stores has increased significantly: “Yes, the data of the food retail chain“ Elvi ”confirm that the demand for long-stored food products, including salt, has grown significantly almost doubled. There is a particularly high demand for classic cooking salt. Buckwheat (+ 37%), various other cereals and flakes (+ 24%), nutrient-rich dried fruits and nuts (+ 23%), various oils (+ 19%), canned vegetables (+ 18%) bought significantly in seven days ), dry soups and broths (+ 13%), demand for canned meat has grown significantly (+ 90%). ’
At the same time, L. Vārtukapteine emphasizes that there is no reason to worry about a possible shortage of salt in the country, adding: “Stocks of food products in Europe are large enough, and a shortage of certain products is not expected in the near future. Yes, there are producers who have bought raw materials for their products in Russia or in war-torn Ukraine, but they are successfully reorienting their cooperation and looking for raw materials outside these countries and securing production. We have received information from the manufacturer SIA “Latvijas sāls ražošanas kompānija” that the raw materials for the production of cooking salt were previously purchased directly in Ukraine and due to the war the supply of raw materials has been delayed. At the same time, the manufacturer has confirmed that supplies are resuming and alternatives to purchasing raw materials have been found in Europe. ”
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