Supermarkets have issued warnings about food shortages that could be expected within the next few weeks unless the government steps in.
The warnings come after reports of a lack of HGV drivers that have impacted supermarket suppliers.
Experts have said the shortfall is down to new travel restrictions on the UK and European drivers have simply decided not to return due to Covid-19 and Brexit.
While Brexit and coronavirus have had an impact on the dwindling numbers of HGV staff, even before the pandemic the estimated shortage of drivers was about 60,000.
On top of the shortages, the gas crisis and CO2 crisis could lead to supermarkets running out of meat within two weeks.
The Mirror spoke with the six biggest supermarkets for any information on whether the shortages were likely to stop effect shoppers so that they know what to expect.
While the majority have indicated that there are no issues just yet, shoppers have reported that they have noticed a few emptier shelves than normal.
Here is what a few of the supermarkets had to say on the current situation.
Morrisons
A spokesperson for the supermarket said it would not comment but instead echo a statement from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), a trade body for shops.
A BRC spokesperson said: "We will have to see what happens over the next few weeks. If government doesn’t intervene, especially with HGV drivers, then there could be some availability issues in stores."
But a person close to Morrisons did say a lack of CO2 was "tight but manageable" at the supermarket.
Sainsburys
The supermarket also backed the BRC - meaning no shortages yet, but some possible without help.
Tesco
A Tesco spokesperson would not comment on shortages, but a well-placed source said the supermarket had "good availability in stores and online".
The source added: "Our frozen deliveries do not use dry ice and are operating as normal. We’re liaising with the government to understand their plans and we will continue to monitor the situation."
Chairman, John Allan, has urged people not to panic buy in the weeks building up to the festive period.
But Walker said: "This is no longer about whether or not Christmas will be OK, it's about keeping the wheels turning and the lights on so we can actually get to Christmas.
"This could become a problem over the coming days and weeks, so this is not an issue that's months away."
Walker has also said that the national shortage of lorry drivers has led Iceland to cancel at least 250 store deliveries a week.
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