SATT: Supermarkets will not be made safe zones

The Supermarket Association of Trinidad and Tobago (SATT) says they will not be making supermarkets safe zones nor subscribing to that concept. The Association was responding to a joint press release by AMCHAM, Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Energy Chamber which called on the government to make public spaces and businesses safe zones.

In a press release issued today, SATT said they “recognise the customer’s right to access foodstuff which is a basic need, therefore, we cannot, in good conscience, refuse them the right to access that at our stores.”

The following is a press release from SATT:

The Supermarket Association of Trinidad and Tobago takes notes of the joint release dated 13/12/2021 by AMCHAM,Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Energy Chamber.

Firstly to provide context, we must keep in mind that supermarkets have been operating nonstop during the pandemic unaffected by closures as an essential business. This means we were forced to embrace the flood of information that was coming out of the leading worldwide health authorities, with respect to the use of PPE, sanitation and what would eventually become the health protocols of hand washing, mask wearing and social distancing.

This also means we are uniquely positioned to deal with it having done so for the period since March 2020. Before any of that however, we held discussions with the Trinidad and Tobago Medical Association to determine the best way to manage numbers (6 ft apart at the time), Signage, wearing of masks, regular PA reminders, Sinks to be used and other safety measures.

We also have been proactive in the education of our customers as a national body in tandem with several NGO’s to sensitize and create COVID-19 awareness. We were also the chief pioneer of vaccination efforts having vaccinated close to 70,000 persons through our mass vaccination site at Centre Pointe Mall Chaguanas.

While we also wish to see government offices and public spaces deemed ‘safe zones’, we at SATT have recognised the customer’s right to access foodstuff which is a basic need, therefore, we cannot, in good conscience, refuse them the right to access that at our stores while we feel given our wealth of experience in the austere management of health protocols which we already meet and exceed having set the bar.

As such, we will neither be naming supermarkets safe zones nor subscribing to that concept. We wish to make it abundantly clear that no member in The SATT is engaging in predatory practices at this time. We are experiencing a deep fallout from the calamitous effects felt by the global supply chain made more deleterious at this time by the pandemic.

Rising prices are being passed on and, as an import dependent nation, there is little we can do to prevent that. There have been removal of VAT on basic food items and people have access to staples which our stores do their best to keep inventory items for the indigent and vulnerable. As a fiercely competitive sector, customers can be comforted by the deals and specials put out by the competition.

We already have protocols in place at stores for the management of COVID-19. We are strongly urging the Government to lead the line sooner rather than later with the Omicron and Delta variants inevitable in their arrival. A policy position must guide the nation alongside constant education of the pros versus the cons of vaccination. People have a personal responsibility to themselves, their families and to society to protect lives. As citizens who want to return to a state of normalcy, now is the time to remind each other of that personal responsibility

CNC3 Editor
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CNC3 Editor

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