Sales of hand sanitiser, bottled water and tinned food surged after the Government launched its Be Ready emergency preparedness campaign, new retail figures published on Tuesday show.

In the ten days after the campaign launched on 22 October, hand sanitiser sales jumped 83 per cent compared with a year earlier, bottled water sales rose 67 per cent and tinned and jarred goods climbed 37 per cent, according to data from retail research firm Worldpanel by Numerator.

The Government's campaign urges households to keep enough food and water to get through three days without essential services, in case of disruption from severe weather or cyber attacks.

Shoppers stock up, but not panic buying

Worldpanel said the equivalent of an extra 400,000 people a day bought tinned meat after the campaign launched, a rise of 43 per cent in daily buyers. The typical amount bought stayed at 500g, which the firm said pointed to gradual stocking up rather than panic buying.

Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel by Numerator, said: "Shoppers clearly took notice of the 'Be Ready' campaign, but this wasn't panic buying, with less than a third of households buying bottled water in October."

Food manufacturer Princes Group, whose products include tinned tuna, meat and vegetables, also said on Tuesday that demand had risen since the campaign began. Princes makes brands including Napolina canned tomatoes and Crosse & Blackwell soups.

What the Be Ready campaign advises

The Be Ready campaign, launched on 22 October, advises households to keep three days' worth of food and water at home, including at least nine litres of water per person, long-life food that does not need to be kept in the fridge, torches, batteries, medicines and cash in case electronic payments fail.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said everyone should have "those supplies in the house to get you through those moments" when services are disrupted.

Retailers have reported strong demand for the items named in the guidance. Some bottled water and soup lines were reported out of stock at online grocers in the days after the launch, although retailers say availability remains strong overall.

Most shoppers aware, fewer acting

Earlier polling suggested the campaign had cut through widely but that most households had not yet acted on it. A survey of 2,087 adults in Great Britain, carried out on 3 November, found 84 per cent were aware of the advice, but only 23 per cent of those aware had bought extra key essentials.

The British Retail Consortium said the Government had advised people to build up a small supply gradually, by adding an extra tin or other long-life item to their usual shop, and that food availability remained strong.

Overall grocery inflation ticked higher to 2.6 per cent in the four weeks to 1 November, Worldpanel said, although that was still slower than the UK's overall inflation rate. The official Be Ready guidance is published on GOV.UK.