With bars and restaurants being forced to shut down by Dutch government, foodservice suppliers open up their cash-and-carry warehouses for the general public. Following the corona restrictions, the central bureau of food suppliers (CBL) requested the government to open up the big food suppliers for the public. Supplier GEPU already opened its Utrecht store to the public last Monday, Makro and Sligro followed Thursday afternoon.
Usually, these cash-and-carry warehouses are only accessible for bar- and restaurant owners. Now restaurants and bars are closed, the food suppliers are stuck with excess inventory of products, many of them perishable. By opening up to the general public the food suppliers hope to reduce their losses while lightening the burden on supermarkets that try to keep up with the increasing ‘at home’ consumer demand.
Source: Ruben den Boer