Pressures from dwindling and expensive food supplies faced by restaurateurs may cause a race to the produce aisle for shoppers.
Retail giants Foodstuffs NZ and Countdown expect the ongoing disruption to the global supply chain to carry on into the year as the pandemic continues.
The supply issue meant Tutukaka Marina Pizzeria
owner Rhys Hughes had to rely on trips to the supermarket over the summer to gather produce that he can't source from his usual supplier, Bidfood.
Hughes said they were unable to get enough produce to supply their restaurant – and others - as the food distribution service struggled for stock.
The main problem was securing citrus fruits, spinach, herbs or similar produce, he said.
"Sometimes I would get what I want from Bidfood, other times I do not. When I go to the supermarket, and I find spinach here, I'll buy all the spinach - which could be 30 bags."
"It is just a matter of going into and raiding the supermarkets, which is probably why a lot of supermarket shelves are empty," Hughes said.
"If they've got 30 lemons we'll take them all, and if they've got mushrooms in the boxes, I'll just take the whole box."
Hughes' shopping methods were a necessity for him to keep his business afloat as purchasing produce directly from the farmers' market was unaffordable for him.
"Things are really slowing down here and summer's been really short, a lot less busy than last year. It turns out that if you tell Aucklanders to stay away, they actually do stay away."
His struggles were echoed by Charn Tiebtienrat, the owner of Suk Jai Thai restaurant in Whangārei.
He said sales at the restaurant plummeted by $300k compared to 2019.
"I thought 2020 was bad, but last year was worse."
Skyrocketing produce prices and talk of a future supply shortage and escalating costs for imported products has seen Tiebtienrat also turn to the supermarket aisles as a solution.
"The last time I got broccoli, it came for $4.70, when normally its price is around $2. If I don't put any broccoli in our food some customers will complain and say 'why is there no broccoli in the food?'
"We have to buy directly from the supermarkets, and since it is for a restaurant we usually take a trolley or box of any product. We don't have any options because if I don't put certain things in the food the customer will notice," he said.
The mounting pressures have forced Tiebtienrat to increase his prices as of next month.
"I am scared to stock more stuff in case it goes bad, and at the same time afraid there will be a shortage since omicron has entered the country," he said.
While the finger is mostly being pointed at Covid-19, Whangārei Growers' Market co-founder Robert Bradley claims the weather could be part of the reason there was a shortage.
