//Peppers have become the latest vegetable to run in short supply following cold weather in Spain
// Last year, farmers warned that pepper and cucumber shortages might happen in the spring because supermarkets were not paying enough to grow them.
Morrisons has begun rationing sales of peppers to two per customer.
Unseasonably cold weather in Spain means that peppers have become the latest vegetable to be in short supply, following a tomato shortage earlier this year.
Morrisons is hoping to lift the buying limits in the next week or two.
Meanwhile, Waitrose said it has completely run out of peppers in some stores and that yellow peppers are in particularly short supply.
Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest news straight into your inbox each morning
Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Lidl introduced rationing on vegetables including tomatoes back in February due to poor harvest in the European country, soaring energy costs and red tape from Brexit.
An industry source told The Times: ”Spain is key for supplying British retailers during winter, and almost every retailer in the UK will source peppers from here.
”They need warmth and light to develop – green into yellow then into red.”
The British Retail Consortium said: ”As with the tomato and cucumber shortages, retailers blamed extreme weather in Europe rather than Brexit.
“Difficult weather conditions in the south of Europe and northern Africa disrupted harvest.”
Last year UK farmers warned there could be pepper and cucumber shortages might happen in the spring because supermarkets were not paying enough to grow them.
The Lea Valley Growers Association, which produces three-quarters of Britain’s cucumbers and peppers, said 40 of its 80 members opted not to plant vegetables over concerns they would make financial losses.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
