Here’s more news on the toilet paper ordeal here in Australia. The other day we received an email from the CEO of Woolies and today it is Coles CEO. He wrote ‘As you may have seen, the past few days have been challenging for some customers with shortages of selected items, in particular toilet rolls! For which I apologise.

This is due to increased purchases of everyday items by some customers brought about, in part, by an international media & social media frenzy – which then causes other customers to lose confidence in the system and then buy more themselves. Australia has an outstanding supply chain and most of our products are sourced from Australia including toilet paper.

We’re working to re-stock shelves every day to meet demand, and we have agreements in place to increase production of everyday items in Australia if the need arises. We have increased the number of team members in our stores and our suppliers are doing the same.

However, in the short term, we have reluctantly chosen to introduce a temporary 4 pack limit on toilet paper to ensure the elderly and those groups at highest risk can still access the everyday products they need, and to reduce likelihood of bulk purchasing which then appear on the internet at a price premium.

I understand the average 4 person family needs around 20 rolls of toilet paper per fortnight, and larger packs contain around 30 rolls meaning 4 packs would total 120 rolls – enough for around 12 weeks.

We appreciate the understanding and patience of our customers who miss out, and our hardworking suppliers and team members who are doing their best to ensure we are helping all customers.

We appreciate your business and I know that security of grocery supply is a key concern for all Australians. Through the bushfires I also know that Australia is at its best when we all come together to help each other.’

Isn’t it good the big grocery outlets are looking out for us? Oh, when you come to visit bring your own toilet paper!