Giant German discount retailer Aldi Süd is laying on extra trains packed full of pasta from Italy to restock shelves after German shoppers stripped stores of non-perishable goods due to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to Lebensmittelzeitung, the discount giant has imported more than 200 tons of pasta from Italy. Over 300 pallets with more than 400,000 packages of fusilli, penne and spaghetti have already arrived in Nuremberg, the retailer said. More than 250 further pallets are on their way.
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS AND PASTA SUPPLY CHAIN
The coronavirus crisis is leading to more difficult conditions in the supply chain. According to Aldi, transports to Italy are currently becoming fewer and fewer, so there is a lack of trucks for the way back. “The limited capacities mean that cargo is no longer arriving in its entirety in Germany,” says Aldi Süd.
The alternative supply chain works like this: trucks transport pasta from supplier Pastificio Guido Ferrara (near Naples) to Northern Italy, where the journey continues by rail. DB Schenker is the logistics service provider.
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“We can now react flexibly to logistic problems,” says Andreas Kremer, Director supply chain management at Aldi Süd. “The manufacturer can be sure that we will continue to accept his products, and our customers can rely on replenishment”. There is still no reason for ‘panic purchases’, the discounter reassures. This is also what the German government and other retailers have said as companies and authorities are keen to maintain a free flow of goods.