Discount supermarket giant Aldi has reached out to suppliers over contingency measures that might be needed in the case of a "no deal" Brexit as fears over potential shortages swell.
The German retailer asked suppliers last month questions around what proportion of EU staff they employ and the implications of World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariffs for their products, according to a Sunday Times investigation.
Aldi, which has more than 700 stores in the UK, also said it was keen to work with suppliers "to help understand the potential implications" and to "mitigate any negative impacts" of a no-deal scenario.
Read more: Supermarket body hits back at 'impractical' food stockpiling claims
The threat of shortages in the event that Britain fails to reach an agreement with the EU has spooked some of the UKs major industries in recent weeks.
The head of NHS England recently said that "extensive" planning is being undertaken to prevent medicine and doctor shortages if no British-EU deal is reached.
Recent research from the London School of Economics (LSE) even suggested that everyday dairy products such as butter, yoghurt and cheese could become luxury items in post-Brexit Britain.
Read more: Austria's Chancellor tells Theresa May to avoid a 'hard Brexit'
While Brexit secretary Dominic Raab implied last week that it was the role of the grocery industry to ensure there were "adequate food supplies", the British Retail Consortium has since hit back, saying that stockpiling was "not a practical response".
Raab has also said that it would be "wrong to describe it as the government doing stockpiling but we will look at this issue in the round and make sure that there is adequate food supply."
The possibility of no deal being reached between Britain and Brussels next year seemed more likely after the EU's lead negotiator Michel Barnier ruled out Theresa May's customs union plans.
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