Kroger spokesperson says don't hoard with COVID-19 panic shopping - grocers won't run out

Grocery stores are fighting to keep stock of basic necessities as shoppers hoard.

"I think a lot of people are panicking," said Geneva Braithwaite. "I just need some food for my kids."

You don't need to stockpile toilet paper, but people are doing it. You don't need all the pasta on the shelf, but you can't find any. And as for water, sure buy a case but don't clean out the stores.

For places like Kroger and Meijer, the massive amount of people panic shopping is hurting families who really need some very basic necessities.

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People like Geneva Braithwaite from Southfield. She just needs some basics to feed her family.

"I think a lot of people are panicking. I just need some food for my kids," Braightwaite said.

As the country reacts to the coronavirus outbreak, shopping for basic items like toilet paper is challenging because of panic shopping. 

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Kroger spokeswoman Rachel Hurst said people don't need to worry about them running out of food.

"We are doing everything in our power to get as much product as we can in all of our stores throughout the state," Hurst said. "At this time it's not a need to hoard weeks of food. We are going to continue to keep doors open."

Kroger has already made changes to accommodate the demand and so they can scrub the stores down. 

"It is 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. that was a change from 6 a.m. to midnight across the state," Hurst said. "So we did cut back our hours of operation in order to shut down our stores, get our trucks in as quick as possible and be able to fill our shelves as full as possible."

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Kroger also would limit high demand items, like hand sanitizer.

In a statement, Meijer says it's also limiting quantities on essential items where necessary. They also say they are still offering Meijer Home Delivery and Pickup, but as expected they are very busy and slots are continuing to fill quickly.