Yellow ticket rolls couriered around NZ to keep up with demand

Yellow rolls of paper to print Lotto tickets is in hot demand. Photo / File

Courier companies around the country are busy delivering yellow ticket roll to stores so they have enough ahead of what's expected to be Lotto's busiest day in history.

"We've distributed four times more yellow ticket roll this month, compared with the February last year.

"What Lotto NZ physically sells is a piece of paper, but with that comes a dream – a chance to win, a chance to change your life and the lives of those around you." , Head of Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility at Lotto NZ Marie Winfield said in a statement.

Ahead of tonight's "jaw-dropping" $50 million draw, and with ticket sales projected well in excess of 2 million, the challenge has been to ensure all Lotto NZ stores have enough yellow paper.

"Our warehouse and the courier companies have been working hard to make sure Lotto NZ stores are fully stocked with yellow paper, so no one misses out on their chance to win." Winfield said.

Tonight's draw is a must-win. If there are no First Division winners the entire jackpot rolls down to the next division where there are winners – i.e. Second or Third Division.

If there is more than one winner in that prize division, then the prize is shared evenly with all the winners.

"With a Powerball Must Be Won this Saturday, it's guaranteed that one or more lucky Kiwis are going to win big – even if the prize is split.

"Winning can happen anywhere, this year we've made five millionaires already from Auckland (2), Alexandra, Tuatapere and Temuka. We're excited that we'll be making more New Zealanders millionaires this weekend." Winfield said.

The Bay of Plenty's luckiest store is Greerton Lotto with 27 First Division Lotto Family wins
and 13 First Division Powerball winners.

By the numbers
• If you unravelled all the yellow ticket roll Lotto NZ have sent to retail stores this month, it would be as tall as 6133 Auckland Sky Towers stacked on top of each other.

• Or for those trampers out there, that's almost 104 hikes across New Zealand's greatest day walk – The Tongariro Crossing.

• If sightseeing is your thing, the distance of all the yellow ticket roll would get you all the way from Invercargill to the iconic tourist spot – Sydney's Harbour Bridge.

• If you ran the length of the yellow ticket rolls sent out just this week, you'd have run almost 21 marathons.

• To run the length of all the yellow ticket rolls sent out to retail stores this month, All Black, Beauden Barrett would have to play 287 games.

Statistics
1 x Lotto yellow ticket roll is 326.5 metres long
6 rolls per box
1027 boxes have been couriered to stores since 1 February

- Supplied copy