by Freedonia Industry Studies
April 13, 2020
What if there are not enough truckers to bring crops to processors or stores?
What if there are not enough commercial flights (a key transport channel for perishable items) running from South America?
What if border crossings are limited, and the movement of produce and other perishables from fields outside of the US slows?
These are some of the supply chain concerns that keep food retailers and food processors awake at night. Logistics are an increasing concern as the coronavirus pandemic moves around the world.
Regulatory solutions have included dedicated lanes for movement through border crossings and relaxed driver hour limitations for those carrying essential products. However, driver losses due to illnesses or quarantine will be tough to overcome since the commercial driver cohort includes a lot of older workers and new commercial drivers cannot be trained overnight.
Airborne freight shipping will likely remain costly while there are fewer commercial flights in operation worldwide. Shipments of goods often ride in the cargo holds of passenger flights, but those are in limited supply now as travel is largely restricted to essential movement. This will limit imports and possibly product selection and will likely result in food price increases.
For more information, see our sister publisher Packaged Facts’ coverage of the Food industry, including Global Food E-Commerce. Relevant information from The Freedonia Group includes such reports as Global Bulk Packaging, US Rigid Bulk Packaging, Global Commercial Refrigeration, US Commercial Refrigeration, and Global Pallets, as well as Global Food Processing Machinery, which also includes COVID-19 market impact analysis. Additional information from Freedonia Focus is available in these reports: Freight by Truck, Air Transport Services, and Water Transport Services. Freedonia Custom Research is also available for questions requiring tailored market intelligence.