From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Coles has worked closely with government health authorities to protect our customers, team members and the broader community by implementing all recommended workplace health and safety measures.
Following a number of team members at our Laverton chilled distribution centre in Victoria returning positive tests, Coles is working with the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services to have all workers employed at the facility tested for COVID.
Coles has also worked with the Victorian Health Department to conduct contact tracing for positive cases, and as a further precautionary measure a significant proportion of team members at the Laverton distribution centre have been asked to self-isolate at home.
Of the team members who have tested positive, none have been present at the Laverton distribution centre since June 25.
Coles has extensive safety protocols in place at the Laverton distribution centre which comply with government guidelines, and the facility has been deep cleaned daily over the past week.
The Victorian Government is working with Coles to ensure the distribution centre can remain open and keep food on shelves, and has confirmed all necessary precautions and steps have been taken by Coles to ensure the site has been appropriately cleaned and that relevant measures are in place regarding testing and isolation of team members.
While the Laverton distribution centre has been able to maintain operations, the reduced number of available team members has temporarily impacted our ability to replenish our Victorian stores with chilled and fresh produce lines.
Our supply chain team has put in place a number of contingency measures, including re-routing some stock through Coles distribution centres in other states, introducing pop-up distribution centres in Victoria, and working with some suppliers to deliver products direct to our Victorian stores.
Coles is also implementing some additional temporary purchase limits in Victoria to help more of our Victorian customers access the products they need.
The following two-pack purchase limits have now been implemented at all Coles supermarkets, Coles Express and Coles Online in Victoria and Tasmania, as well as Lavington, Albury and Deniliquin in NSW:
| Chilled products (from Laverton DC) |
Ambient and Frozen Product Limits |
| Fresh Milk |
Canned Tomatoes |
| Cheese |
Canned Beans |
| Butter |
Canned Garden Veg |
| Margarine |
Pasta Sauce |
| Chicken Breast |
Canned Fruit |
| Chicken Thighs |
Canned Baked Beans & Spaghetti |
| Prepacked Carrots |
Canned Meat |
| Prepacked Potatoes |
Frozen Fruit & Veg (Inc Potato) |
These new limits are in addition to the two-pack limits introduced for customers of our supermarkets, Coles Express and Coles Online in Victoria and on the NSW border on June 24, which remain in place:
| Pasta |
Mince |
Flour |
Eggs |
| Hand sanitiser |
UHT milk |
Sugar |
Rice |
A one-pack limit continues to apply to toilet paper and paper towel at Coles supermarkets, Coles Online and Coles Express in all states.
Our team is working hard with our suppliers to replenish our stores as soon as possible, and we apologise to customers of our Victorian and NSW border stores who may find some chilled and fresh produce lines are temporarily out of stock.
The health and safety of our team members remains a top priority for Coles and we look forward to welcoming our Laverton team members currently in isolation back to work as soon as they receive necessary clearances.
To help us provide a safe shopping experience for all, we ask that customers continue to treat our team members with respect, buy only what they need, continue observing social distancing in stores, make use of the sanitising stations at the entrance, and plan their visit so they can be 'speedy shoppers'.
