Coin Shortage Causes Kroger Stores to Limit Change
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused many stores to rethink whether or not handing out change is possible. Leading the charge is the Kroger Company, who will stop providing coinage as change at their supermarkets. The decision was made due to several factors including sanitation purposes related to the coronavirus and a general coin shortage in the United States.
Kroger spokesperson Erin Rolfes said that cashiers will no longer hand over dimes, nickels, pennies, and quarters. These small denominations will either be added to the shopper’s Kroger rewards card or donated to Zero Hunger | Zero Waste, Kroger’s foundation to help local communities.
In June, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the flow of coins has been stopped due to the closure of many stores and restaurants. Coins that would usually make their way from consumers to businesses and back to banks have been halted in their tracks. Production of coins dropped 10% in April and 20% in May while the U.S. Mint took the proper precautions necessary to stop the spread of COVID-19 among their employees.
Further limiting shortages, the Federal Reserve began a coin allocation strategy to ensure that each bank would receive an equitable share of coins. Historically, there hasn’t been a shortage of coins like this since 1964, which was triggered by rising prices in silver. During this period of time, Americans began to hoard silver coins such as the Kennedy Half Dollar, Washington Quarter, and Roosevelt Dime because the intrinsic value of the coins surpassed their face value.
Kroger, which owns Ralphs and Food 4 Less among other chains, is the first major supermarket to take this step. Many other stores are simply asking customers to use exact change or their credit/debit cards when making purchases.
“We believe in the power of pocket change,” said Jack McNamara, Senior Coin Buyer and Host of Rare Collectibles TV. “Coins will not be going away anytime soon.”
Be sure to check out our selection of coins: RareCollectiblesTV.com
