Asda and Tesco ration products as Leeds shoppers stockpile over coronavirus fears

At Asda, hand sanitiser is restricted to two per person both in-store and online and many anti-bacterial products are out of stock online.

Tesco has almost entirely sold out of dried pasta online and has now introduced a five limit number on several items, including anti-bacterial wipes, gels, and long-life milk.

The rations come as Leeds shoppers report shelves emptying over coronavirus fears.

Shopper Samantha Welsh was concerned to find customers 'stockpiling' toilet rolls at Costco on Lathley Road, Leeds, on Friday.

She said: "The car park was full, and it took about 30 mins queuing to pay.

"I’ve been on Friday afternoons before and nothing like this. People were trying to buy more than one pack of loo roll and it was being confiscated at the tills."

In Sainsbury's, Otley, the last toilet paper had been sold by 9.30am on Saturday after a rush of panic buying.

The store was also out of paracetamol while shelves usually stocked with pasta and rice were depleted.

"One person had 20 packs of pasta in their trolley," reported a customer who was shocked by the level of panic buying.

Three people have now been diagnosed with coronavirus in Leeds, taking the Yorkshire total up to 10.

But the Government's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said there is "absolutely no reason" for the British public to panic buy.

Tesco says the restriction of items will be monitored through 'store manager's discretion'.

Responding to concerned customers on Twitter, Tesco said: "We know there's demand for certain products at the moment and we're working really hard to maintain availability of those to help customers.

"We have taken a common-sense approach to make sure everyone can assess essentials and have introduced a maximum purchase limit (5 per customer) on a few items. Products include: anti-bac gel, wipes, sprays, bleach, dried pasta, UHT milk, tinned veg, kids medications & water.

"Any other items out-width the restriction will be monitored through the store managers discretion to ensure fairness to all customers."