First it was milk powder, then it was pawpaw and now it is cereal.

A picture of a trolley jam-packed with Weet-Bix suggests the iconic breakfast staple could be the next product heading for shortage in Australia.

The photo shows a man hauling more than 40 large boxes of the cereal through a self-serve checkout at a Coles supermarket in eastern Melbourne.

A man was spotted hauling a trolley packed with Weet-Bix through a supermarket checkout in Australia

The picture caused speculation that Weet-Bix could be the next Australian product headed for shortage

Overseas demand for Weet-Bix has boomed in recent years, led by the growing cereal market in China.

China is now the number one export market for Weet-Bix and demand is forecast to continue growing by as much as 10 per cent in 2016, reported The Australian Financial Review.

A 1.4kg box, worth around $5 in Australia, retails for as much as $38 on Chinese import websites.

Last year a similar trend saw Australia hit by a baby formula shortage as demand for the product skyrocketed in China.

A 1.4kg box of Weet-Bix sells for around $5 in Australia, but retails for as much as USD$28.54 (Australian $38) plus shipping on Chinese importing websites

Australia was hit by a severe baby formula shortage as demand for the product in China skyrocketed

As demand grew customers were pictured with trolleys piled-high with tins of baby formula and stores were forced to introduce limits on individual sales of the product.

Prices for single tins of baby formula rose by as much as 300 per cent – from $25 to $100 – as bulk supplies were bought for cheap in Australia and shipped for sale in China.

Earlier this year chemists were forced to limit sales of Lucas’ Pawpaw Ointment for a similar reason.

As Chinese demand grew wholesalers were choosing to ship the product directly to China where it fetched a premium, ignoring Australia and creating a shortage of supply.

Chinese consumers were stocking-up on the product for cheap in Australia and selling it a premium back home

Prices for single tins of baby formula grew by as much as 300 per cent as demand outstripped supply of the product

Weet-Bix is a high-fibre cereal made by Australian food company Sanitarium.

They were developed by cereal maker Bennison Osborne in Sydney in the 1920s, who perfected his recipe on his nieces and nephews.

The cereal is sold in Australia and New Zealand and in 2006 was voted by consumers as Australia’s favourite product.