Britons seem to have started their Christmas shopping way early this year with a leading supermarket reporting runaway demand for frozen turkeys, stated reports.
Aldi revealed on Tuesday (5) that it is selling 1,500 turkey crowns a day – four times the usual rate for this time of year – with Christmas pudding sales also up 45 per cent.
Similar reports came on Monday (4) when Iceland said its turkey sales have gone up by 409 per cent in September 2021 compared with last year.
M&S also said sales of frozen Christmas food has soared by 500 per cent and that its customers are stocking up much earlier than usual while Waitrose revealed that searches on its website for Christmas cake and Christmas pudding are 46 per cent higher than a year ago, and searches for Christmas delivery had increased 124 per cent.
Apart from frozen turkey, there has been a jump in demand for other essentials including artificial trees and fairy lights, reports said.
With the combined effect of last year’s festivities being cancelled and prime minister Boris Johnson’s speculative statement that strain on supply chain may last several months, shoppers in the UK appear to be extra-cautious this year about their festive supplies.
While multiple suppliers have been urging shoppers not to hoard food and panic buy, saying there is enough to go around, experts have warned there will be a "distinct lack of choice" on shop shelves this year, with some festive favourites likely to be in short supply.
The British Christmas Tree Growers Association (BCTGA) has warned the current heavy goods vehicle (HGV) driver crisis might result in some short supply as one to three million Christmas trees that are usually imported to the UK won’t make it this year.
Amid fewer imports from Asia and higher demand, artificial tree might also be in short supply, reports said.
Brian McLister
