Hand Sanitizer at the Canadian Tire in Prince Albert. (Ian Gustafson/paNOW Staff)

By Ian Gustafson

Hot Commodity

Buying hand sanitizer in bulk in Prince Albert

May 13, 2020 | 3:02 PM

Hand sanitizer is a much-needed item for the public amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

While it remains a hot commodity, its local availability has improved after it was nowhere to be found a month ago.

Canadian Tire Owner Malcolm Jenkins stocked 20-litre pails of hand sanitizer in Prince Albert.

He said everyone knew there was going to be a demand. He said Canadian Tire in conjunction with the federal government got together with a manufacturer and bought 20-litre buckets of hand sanitizer and shipped it to the 500 stores across the country.

“It’s not something I would have rushed out and bought 120 of, I thought ‘Wow that’s a useful thing’ but boy it’s sold,” Jenkins said. “It’s a great product we’re using it in the store, and we’ve reordered, in fact.”

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A bucket of Triton Hand Sanitizer sells for $250 at the local Canadian Tire.

“I guess what people are doing is taking it and sharing it among families putting it into smaller bottles,” he said. “Twenty litres is a lot of anything, right?”

He said local stores and businesses have been their main purchaser.

“Say you walk into a store and you purify your hands as you go in, that kind of thing,” he said.

While the hand sanitizer is helpful, he advised the public to continue social distancing and mask-wearing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

“This thing is gonna be around for a while and we’re taking great steps to make sure people are safe,” he said. “We’re all in it together and we’ll come out the other side. These are unusual times, but I think we’ll be OK.”

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ian.gustafson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @iangustafson12