Popular tourist spot Norfolk Island is running out of basic groceries and needs ’12 Boeing 737s’ a month to replenish supplies
The Foodland supermarket on Norfolk Island is running out of groceries
Store owner Geoff Bennett wrote a letter to break the ‘worsening crisis’
He said he needs ’12 Boeing’ planes every month that deliver stock to solve the problem
Mr Bennett has added a series of photos of his shop showing almost empty shelves
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Norfolk Island is in critical grocery shortage as an irate supermarket owner claims the island needs “12 Boeing 737s” a month to replenish needed supplies.
The popular tourist destination, which is 1,600 kilometers northeast of Sydney, is plagued by freight problems.
The supermarket on the island, Foodland, receives supplies from ships or air freight services.
But owner Geoff Bennett claims his shop has only received 23.5 of the 200 tons of food delivered in the past month.
Norfolk Island’s largest supermarket, Foodland, is in desperate need of groceries due to freight problems
Foodland supermarket owner Geoff Bennett has written a letter with accompanying photos of bare shelves, showing how bad the ‘crisis’ has become for residents of the island
Mr Bennett wrote a letter to the Department of Infrastructure Regional Development and Cities and the Norfolk Island Regional Council about the ‘crisis’, stressing that stock in his warehouse was ‘exhausted’.
He also added a series of photos taken in his shop to showcase The bare shelves of Foodland, showing how bad the situation has become for outraged residents.
“This is by far the worst situation Foodland is in since we launched more than 50 years ago, and we’re really struggling right now,” he said.
“Staff layoffs and shorter trading hours decisions are imminent.”
Mr Bennett explained that his shop ‘needs between 150-200 tons of air freight per month when the ship is not in service’ and that he has only received ‘23.5 tons in the last 4 weeks!’
He said the stock in Foodland’s warehouse is “almost completely exhausted” and that the supermarket will need about 600 tons of groceries in the next two shipments to meet demand.
“The truth is, we CANNOT be sure that we will get 600 tons on either of the next two ships, such as the island-wide demand for cargo. For the rest of 2022 we will therefore have to rely on ad hoc air freight to load!!’
Foodland should have access to 10-12 Boeing 737s per month for Foodland freight alone, to keep up with demand and build the necessary reserve inventory that such an isolated entity is ‘obliged’ to carry,” he said. .
Mr Bennett wrote that supply problems have also affected Norfolk Island’s construction suppliers, bakeries and Liquor Bond bottle shop.
Foodland’s owner suggested Norfolk Island, one of Australia’s self-governing remote areas, should stop taking in tourists until supplies are replenished.
Norfolk Island (pictured right, in red) is 1600 kilometers northeast of Sydney
Norfolk Island has had stock issues in the past. Due to the rugged coastline of the island, large ships must dock at least a kilometer away and supply supplies with long boats
Norfolk Island has had stock problems with grocery items in the past.
In March 2021, ships were unable to deliver items to the island due to a long period of rough seas that prevented cargo ships from docking.
It caused stocks to plummet and grocery prices soar to extraordinary heights.
Equipment unloading has proven to be a dangerous exercise on Norfolk Island due to the rugged coastline that requires large ships to anchor at least a kilometer offshore.
Most of the supplies are then shipped by long boats.