Bring in the army: Food group's call to relieve UK lorry driver crisis

FILE PHOTO: A worker stocks produce shelves in the Canary Wharf store of Waitrose in London January 23, 2013. REUTERS/Neil Hall/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - Premier Foods, one of Britain's biggest food companies, has called on the government to consider using the army to distribute goods to help relieve a severe shortage of truck drivers.

Last week industry leaders warned Britain could face gaps on supermarket shelves this summer and an "unimaginable" collapse of supply chains after the pandemic and Brexit led to a shortage of more than 100,000 heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers.