Food shortages in Coles and Woolworths: warning issued to Aussies

Shoppers are complaining that some popular supermarket items are disappearing from shelves, including Vita Brits, some pasta brands and chicken.

“There hasn’t been spaghetti in Coles Victoria Gardens for over a week,” one frustrated shopper said online.

“There seems to be a shortage of chickens all over Melbourne. I’ve been to five shops – Coles Woolworths and the local butcher – all sold out. They said it’s a problem with the supplier, no deliveries for days,” another customer complained.

One mum said she couldn’t find Vita British cereal anywhere – saying she can’t switch to rival Weetbix because her “kids know the difference.”

A search on the Woolworths online shopping website shows that the 1kg box of Vita British is out of stock, while Barilla branded spaghetti is also unavailable, as are some of Ingham’s chicken products.

A customer couldn’t find the simplest staple, spaghetti, at her local grocery store

One customer suggested that the chicken shortages were due to Ingham cutting back on their contracts with farmers “a few years ago” and only realizing there would be a shortage by the end of 2022.

Ingham CEO Andrew Reeves told a shareholder meeting in November that the cost of chicken feed is skyrocketing while consumer demand is declining.

The company’s annual results released in August showed that spending on chicken feed alone will increase by more than $45 million by 2022.

“We remain in active discussions to secure further price increases to offset ongoing feed costs and other inflationary pressures,” said Mr. Reeves.

Some Ingham products were not available online at Woolworths, while others were

Some supermarkets are short on chicken products and one person suggests that Ingham’s has downsized their contracts with farmers

Wheat, on the other hand, is plentiful – it was one of the few crops to thrive during last year’s wild weather across Australia.

The country’s harvest of winter grain is expected to be about 62 million tonnes – the second largest on record and the largest in terms of wheat, according to Australia’s Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES).

Even simple salad is scarce. This photo of a NSW Woolworths

While wheat grown in Australia is abundant, the crop is in high demand abroad as exports from Ukraine and Russia, traditionally one of the largest grain producers, have fallen dramatically.

The ABARES forecast that Australia’s agricultural exports could exceed $72 billion in fiscal year 2022-2023.

Vita Brits maker Uncle Tobys makes the grain locally using Australian wheat, but there have been recent factory changes.

Owner Nestle cut 32 jobs at the brand’s main factory in northeastern Victoria in 2020 and production was moved to an undisclosed location.

Uncle Tobys said this month that “production disruptions” at the new facility had resulted in product being temporarily out of stock and that the company was working to improve availability.

Pasta, especially the Barilla brand, is becoming increasingly difficult to find in many supermarkets. This photo of a Victorian Woolworths this week

A customer said they got the last box of Barilla pasta from their local store

Barilla makes their pasta in Italy, making it more sensitive to European wheat shortages

Barilla, on the other hand, relies on European and American wheat.

According to the Barilla website, the pasta maker does not make its pasta locally.

Barilla Australia imports most of its pasta and pasta sauces directly from its Italian factories. A small number of pasta varieties are imported from the United States.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Ingham’s, Uncle Tobys and Barilla for comment.