Shoppers are facing a shortage of bananas across the UK after tropical storms in the Pacific have left cargo ships stranded at ports.
Supermarkets such as Tesco and M&S have been hit by the shortages, with pictures shared on social media showing rows of empty shelves accompanied by a sign telling customers there had been shipment delays.
A sign at a store in Osterley, west London, said: ‘We are sorry that bananas are out of stock due to bad weather conditions. We are working hard with our suppliers to refill our shelves.’
It is unclear how many stores have been affected, but issues have also been reported at locations in Maidstone, the Isle of Sheppey, London, and Bournemouth.
Meanwhile, banana shortages were also observed at an M&S store in Foodhall in Chichester, West Sussex.
Customer Linda Okorie wrote on social media: ‘Is there a banana famine that I am not aware of?
‘How can my local Tesco and Aldi be out for the past three days?’
At the time of writing, it is still not clear how widespread the issue is or how many stores have been affected.
Bananas typically come from Ecuador, the Philippines, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Colombia.
There have been six tropical storms reported across the South Pacific and Indian Oceans during the last days of February, which is believed to be the source of the shortage.
Tesco and M&S have been reached for comment.
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