Fruit and veg could get scarcer in Europe as virus bites

European supermarkets have got used to dealing with panic buyers.

Purchase limits have become standard for many items.

But now a new issue could be looming.

Suppliers say fresh produce may be about to get scarcer.

The global pandemic is hampering the movement of produce and the people needed to gather crops.

In Spain, Europe's biggest exporter of fruit and vegetables, migrant workers who usually do the picking aren't turning up.

Unions say absentee rates are as high as 50%.

In Kenya, a major supplier of green beans and peas, half of all workers have been sent home.

Not because they're sick but because the industry is unable to ship orders.

Exports from South Africa, another key supplier, will be hit when a 21-day lockdown begins this week.

The supply chain is a problem everywhere.

Truck drivers are in short supply and planes are stuck on the ground.

Kenyan exporters say that's seen air freight costs triple in recent weeks.

Now even longer lasting produce like citrus fruits could be threatened.

That as shipping containers run short due to China's lockdown.

But before any new panic buying starts, Thursday (March 26) also saw words of reassurance.

The boss of UK online supermarket Ocado says people don't have to worry about shortages.

Stuart Rose says there's plenty of food to go around, though he also urged people to make full use of every morsel.