Empty spots on shelves in grocery stores have become very common during the COVID-19 pandemic due to worldwide supply chain issues.
Certain products disappear from shelves faster than others, as shoppers may struggle to find exactly what they're looking for. Eat This, Not That! put out a list of the top six items grocery items that are still facing shortages, suggesting shoppers take advantage of an opportunity to buy them when they see them in stores.
Labor shortages and transportation issues are still creating problems for the dairy industry, according to US Foods. Therefore, milk is becoming less likely to be on the shelf when you go to the grocery store.
Bryon Lehman, a local farmer and board member of Dairy Farmers of America from Wichita, KS talked to KWCH-12 about the challenges he and other farmers are dealing with that have been causing supply chain issues.
"We have all the raw milk that's needed. It's more of a labor problem and processing," Lehman said. "We're no different out here on this farm. We can't find the help that we need. We're short of help…[And] we're 80,000 semi drivers short in the United States now."
According to the Wall Street Journal, aluminum prices have gone up 24% in the last six months due to less inventory in China. So that means that all canned items could cost a bit more right now. Anything from peas, to fruit, to even beer are being affected.
John Hayes, CEO of the Ball Corporation, told Waste Dive that the industry is struggling to produce cans while more and more companies are creating new canned beverages.
"We are capacity constrained, right now" Hayes said. "The reality is, we don't have the cans to supply those people that are looking to go into it."
The New York Times reported in December 2021 about an ongoing shortage, specifically in New York City, that has created a dilemma for a popular breakfast item. Another dairy item, cream cheese, is becoming less and less easily available. Supply chain issues have greatly affected Kraft Heinz, makers of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, who sell their products to bagel shops across the United States. Now, tons of stores are missing their cream cheese orders and aren't able to provide one of their best selling items.
One of the trendiest food over the last decade has also faced adversity during the pandemic, as labor shortages and a lack of rainfall has hurt the avocado business. Prices for the superfood have gone up, and imports from Mexico have had transportation issues. The United States was forced to pause imports on avocados from Mexico in February amid quality concerns.
Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, wheat, corn, soybean, and oat products are all expected to go up in prices at the grocery store. Both countries combined produce 80% of the sunflower oil, 29% of the wheat, and 19% of the corn for exports around the world, according to Food Dive.
They said that corn and wheat prices could increase by 20 to 30%. This means that popular products like pasta could become much more expensive in stores as wheat supplies are being affected by multiple challenges. David Laborde, senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute, spoke to The New York Times about wheat production amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, adding that it will "likely have an immediate impact on the global wheat market stability."
"By then, if farmers could not harvest due to lasting military operations, or if port facilities and railroads have been damaged, the situation will be particularly gloomy," Laborde said. "Many countries in North Africa and the Middle East are particularly dependent on wheat from Ukraine and Russia and likely to be hard hit."
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