It’s fortunate that no mass infections occurred so far... Large supermarkets have quarantine gaps everywhere

Increase in People Shopping to Spend Time with Family Amid Restrictions on Gatherings and Travel
Stores Spacious but Hand Sanitizers Placed Only at Some Entrances... 2m Distance Often Not Maintained
Customers Touch Products with Bare Hands... Shoppers Say "Crowded Shopping Feels Unsafe"

On the afternoon of the 13th, customers are selecting items at a large supermarket located in Seongdong-gu, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporters Donghoon Jeong, Jeongyun Lee] "If you want to buy hand sanitizer, please go to the household goods section, and if you want to use it, please go to the store entrance."

On the afternoon of the 13th, at a large supermarket located in Jung-gu, Seoul, this was the response from an employee when asked, "Can I use the hand sanitizer?" Since the third wave of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and the gathering ban on groups of five or more people imposed by health authorities from the end of the year, large supermarkets have become even more crowded. This phenomenon has arisen as people spend more time at home with their families due to restrictions on various gatherings and travel. Although people visit large supermarkets to prevent the spread of COVID-19, it is pointed out that these places are not safe spaces from the virus. Supermarkets are vulnerable to infection due to the ‘3密 (closed spaces, crowded places, close-contact settings)’ environment, and users tend to stay for relatively long periods. However, even in stores with areas exceeding several thousand square meters, there were only one or two hand sanitizers placed at each entrance, and most places lacked a system to check visitors.

Health authorities recommend measures for supermarkets and department stores such as maintaining a 2-meter distance, using hand sanitizer before using shopping carts, shopping with the minimum number of people, and utilizing electronic payments. However, these are only recommendations, leaving the responsibility for infection control to each store. As a result, infection control management varies widely between large supermarket branches.

Some stores enforce infection control by mandating temperature checks, hand sanitizer use, and wearing vinyl gloves before entry, but at the Jung-gu supermarket visited that day, customers entered after only temperature checks. Inside the store, it was noticeable that customers pushed carts and touched items with bare hands without vinyl gloves. Office worker Seohyun Seok (31) said, "I used to visit the supermarket frequently to buy fruits and vegetables, but seeing customers handle displayed products with bare hands, I recently only buy fresh products through online shopping."

The situation was similar at a large supermarket in Seongdong-gu visited on the same day. As more people cook at home since COVID-19, the number of customers visiting this store has increased. A store employee said, "Compared to before COVID-19, many more people visit the supermarket," adding, "On weekends or evenings, the aisles where customers move can become completely blocked."

Although the number of supermarket visitors has greatly increased, gaps in infection control were observed in various places. The grocery section was crowded with customers buying ingredients for dinner, and social distancing was not properly maintained. At the fruit section, three to four carts were tangled, blocking the passageway, and at the seafood and meat sections, people were seen closely huddled together selecting products. Customer Kim (35) said, "I visit the supermarket often because I eat dinner at home more frequently," but added, "Because it gets crowded, I have to shop very close to others, which makes me uneasy."

Once customers entered the supermarket, it was difficult to use hygiene products such as hand sanitizer. At the supermarket entrance, there were two hand sanitizers, one cart sanitizer, and vinyl gloves available. However, such infection control supplies were not provided inside the store. When asked about the location of hand sanitizers, an employee replied, "You can only use them at the store entrance."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.