Sacramento grocery CEO says to resist stockpiling amid the coronavirus. More on the way
A surge of customers worried about the coronavirus spread has emptied grocery store shelves over the past several days throughout the Sacramento area, leaving many to wonder whether food was running out.
But major grocery store chains in the region and officials involved in the distribution of the food supply for California and the rest of the United States say customers should not be worried. They say there’s plenty of food to go around, and efforts are being made to speed up the process to restock shelves to keep up with this new demand.
Some grocery stores are opening early to give elderly people and are other vulnerable customers a chance to shop without worrying about coronavirus infection and the respiratory illness it causes, COVID-19
It’s been consistently busy at Taylor’s Market in Sacramento’s Land Park neighborhood, according to Felicia Johnson, the operations manager. She said “it’s been insane,” similar to the rush of customers they usually get over the holidays.
Taylor’s Market has always been careful about sanitizing the store, but employees are spending more time wiping down shopping carts, the cash register areas and the meat counter.
The store is opening an hour early, 8 a.m., to allow those most vulnerable to the coronavirus, mainly the elderly, a chance to “shop in a more sanitized store without having to worry about interacting with the larger public,” Johnson said.
Raley’s program for elderly
The West Sacramento-based supermarket chain Raley’s distribution centers and its fleet of several hundred trailers continue working around the clock to deliver more product to stores, Raley’s CEO Keith Knopf said in a statement posted on the company’s website. He added that staff is working closely with suppliers to prioritize restocking shelves.
Raley’s is hiring personal shoppers to meet the new demands and were reaching out to business partners, such as hotel and restaurants, to provide their temporarily displaced employees work opportunities. Knopf said they expect to add several hundred new jobs for an initial period of 30 days. The job listings can be found on the Raley’s website.
Until demand returns to normal, he said Raley’s has a limit of two-per-family on some items, including milk, eggs, water, fresh-packaged chicken and paper products.
Raley’s has suspended open self-serve hot food and salad offerings as a precaution. Instead, these items will be prepackaged and stocked on shelves, Knopf said. Employees have already been increasing sanitizing efforts throughout the stores.
For customers 65 and older asked to stay home during the coronavirus crisis, Raley’s has started a special program that offers a pre-selected bag of grocery staples at a discount. Knopf said this bag can be picked up at the store by a caregiver or friend. Details about this program will be available on Raley’s website soon.
“Please know, the food system in the United States is the most sophisticated and robust in the world and amid ‘rational’ demand it will keep up,” Knopf said in the statement. “If we all normalize our buying behavior and resist the unnecessary need to stockpile, everyone can have what they need.”
Nugget Markets new opening hours
The Woodland-based Nugget Markets on Thursday announced it has designated temporary shopping hours twice a week specifically for customers 65 years old or older and those who with health conditions who are at-risk of the coronavirus, according to a news release. These hours will begin next week on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 to 8 a.m. or from 7 to 8 a.m. depending on the Nugget Markets store locations.
Nugget Markets representatives asked customers to be mindful of those in need and reserve these times for the elderly and others at-risk.
Nugget Markets opening at 6 a.m. are in Davis on Covell Boulevard, El Dorado Hills, Elk Grove, Roseville, Sacramento, Vacaville, West Sacramento and Woodland; Sonoma Market, Fork Lift by Nugget Markets in Cameron Park and Food 4 Less in Woodland.
Nugget Markets opening at 7 a.m. are in Davis on Mace Boulevard, Corte Madera, Novato and Tiburon.
“Please do not panic buy; we all need to work together and we will get through this,” President and CEO of Nugget Markets Eric Stille said in a written statement. “Let’s remain calm and come together as a community and look out for one another, especially our elderly and health-challenged neighbors.”
The grocery store also is looking to hire those temporarily out of work. A list of available jobs has been posted on the Nugget Markets website. Stille said his current employees have been doing “continuous intensive cleaning and sanitizing,” and stocking shelves around the clock, along with preparing food and baked goods.
Save Mart has steady stream of products
Save Mart, which has stores in several cities, including Sacramento, Modesto, Merced and Fresno, is trying to hire nearly 1,000 employees throughout California and northern Nevada due to increasing demands.
“We have a steady stream of products coming in from our warehouses,” Save Mart spokeswoman Victoria Castro told The Sacramento Bee. “Our stores are working around the clock to push out product as soon as we receive the deliveries.”
It varies by each location, but Castro said that generally the highest demand of products in Save Mart Cos. stores has been paper and cleaning products. Now, it’s breads, meats and pastas that are highest in demand, she said.
The Modesto-based Save Mart Cos. company, which includes 205 FoodMaxx, Lucky and Save Mart grocery stores, also is hiring for jobs at its warehouses in Roseville and Merced. Castro said just because a store shelf is empty one day, doesn’t mean it will stay empty for long.
“If a specific product is not on our shelves today, we should have it back by the next day,” Castro said.
Save Mart Cos. announced Thursday that its stores will have dedicated shopping hours for customers vulnerable to the coronavirus to shop on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 to 9 a.m. Save Mart officials asked other customers to allow vulnerable customers, such as the elderly, pregnant women and those with compromised immune systems primary access to the stores during these hours.
Save Mart Companies is looking to hire in-store employees, drivers, and warehouse team members. The available jobs at each location can be found on the Save Mart website.
The Save Mart Cos. also operate Smart Refrigerated Transport and partner in Super Store Industries, which owns and operates a distribution center in Lathrop and the Sunnyside Farms dairy processing plant in Turlock.
Safeway restocks shelves
Pleasanton-based Safeway also is hiring for in-store employees and delivery drivers at its stores in Northern California, Nevada and Hawaii.
Wendy Gutshall, a Safeway spokeswoman, said the company is asking customers to respect quantity limits of select, high-demand items such as hand sanitizers and household cleaners. Safeway wants to make sure these products will be available for more customers to purchase.
“As products run low, we are replenishing them just as soon as the supply chain allows,” Gutshall told The Bee. “We are deeply grateful to our store associates for their tireless dedication during this critical time.”
She advised customers to check with their local store about specific stock levels and purchase limits. Gutshall said some Safeway stores also have adjusted business hours to give employees the time they need to restock shelves and sanitize the store.
“Our stores are following an enhanced cleaning and disinfection schedule throughout each day,” Gutshall said.
This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 5:12 PM.
