Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect of (a) stockpiling and (b) purchase limits being placed on products by supermarkets on the quantity of food donations to food banks.

The Government is in regular contact with the food industry on the response to coronavirus, building on our well-established links with the industry to manage disruption. The industry has adapted quickly to what have been unprecedented changes in consumer demands, and food supply into and within the UK is resilient.

To help supermarkets, the Government has already introduced new measures to keep food supply flowing. We have relaxed competition law, issued guidance to local authorities to allow extended delivery hours to supermarkets so that shelves can be filled up more quickly, and have implemented extensions to drivers’ hours.