Asda and Morrisons sandwich firm will airlift food if a No Deal Brexit happens
A supplier for Asda, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, The Co-op, Waitrose and M&S has said could have to airlift produce in the event of a No Deal Brexit, meaning sandwiches could get more expensive
A SUPERMARKET supplier of sandwiches is considering airlifting in produce to the UK if supplies run low due a No Deal Brexit.
Grencore, which stocks major supermarkets including M&S, Asda and Morrisons with the lunchtime meal deal staple, has also started stockpiling ingredients ahead of the UK's exit from the EU.
The boss of the firm spoke about the need to plan in case the UK crashes out of the EU at its AGM this morning.
Chief executive Patrick Coveney said that it was considering bringing key ingredients sourced outside the UK - such as rocket and spinach - by air freight.
A spokesperson for Greencore said that produce would only be airlifted in if its retail clients agreed to share the cost - which could mean your lunchtime sandwiches could get more expensive.
They said: "One option would be to temporarily alter our product range accordingly, and another option would be to airlift the produce, although we would only do so if we were able to share the cost with our retail customers.”
Greencore supplies to Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, the Co-op, Waitrose and M&S.
The supplier also confirmed it has started to stockpile in case of No Deal.
It said: “We have begun stocking up on a small amount of certain products in the event of a no-deal, such as frozen prawns and tomato paste.
"But we are fortunate in that the majority of our ingredients come from within the UK... so we do not envisage any significant impact to our product range."
At the AGM Coveney also suggested that substituting ingredients could be another way to manage the shortfall.
The Sun has contacted all the supermarkets that could be affected, but none have been available for comment so far.
What should we be stocking up on ahead of Brexit?
THERE is a real threat of imported goods being stopped at the borders meaning we may see a shortage of some products in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Here are the types of things that face a shortage:
Clean water - Yep, you read that correctly. Environment Secretary Michael Gove believes Britain could run out of clean water within days after claiming that the country's supply depends heavily on chemicals imported from the EU.
Medicines - The Government promises to have six weeks worth of medical supplies after Brexit and is warning Brits shouldn't stockpile drugs at home. Still, health bosses warned that hospitals could run out of life-saving drugs in a no-deal situation.
Fresh food - Tesco has joined other businesses in stockpiling goods in case of a no-deal although it confessed that storing fresh food would be "hard" to do.
Motor goods - BMW has warned that it would have to close UK plants if parts imported from the EU are stopped at the border.
Yesterday the British Retail Consortium along with the majority of Greencore's supermarket clients wrote an open letter to parliament warning of the risks to consumers if the UK leaves without a deal.
It read: "While we have been working closely with our suppliers on contingency plans it is not possible to mitigate all the risks to our supply chains and we fear significant disruption in the short term as a result if there is no Brexit deal.
"Our supply chains are closely linked to Europe – nearly one third of the food we eat in the UK comes from the EU. In March the situation is more acute as UK produce is out of season: 90 per cent of our lettuces, 80 per cent of our tomatoes and 70 per cent of our soft fruit is sourced from the EU at that time of year.
"As this produce is fresh and perishable, it needs to be moved quickly from farms to our stores.
"This complex, ‘just in time’ supply chain will be significantly disrupted in the event of no deal... For consumers, this will reduce the availability and shelf life of many products in our stores."
The supermarkets all said that they were stockpiling as much frozen food as they could, but that warehouse space was in short supply.
They also highlighted the impossibility to storing up fresh produce, and urged the government to find an alternative to No Deal at all costs.
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