Local Grocery Stores Remain Understocked Amid National Food Shortages
You know it’s bad when even Trader Joe’s isn’t safe.
Imagine that you’re on your weekly grocery run, scanning the aisles for your favorite products as usual. As you wander around the store, though, you find yourself surrounded by empty shelves, particularly in the meat and dairy aisles. Shoppers around New York City have been facing this unfortunate reality as of late, as the spread of the Omicron virus has led to yet another national food supply shortage.
The shortage may give you flashbacks to early 2020, when the onslaught of COVID-19 also weakened supply chain nationally. Due to the influx of Omicron infections, the ongoing pandemic has once again created logistical obstacles for supply chain management. In an interview with Supply Chain Digital, retail and supply chain expert David Marcotte spoke on behalf of Kantar Consulting, claiming that the latest impact on supply chain is even worse than it was in 2020.
To put it simply, the supply chain is the process by which products are transported from their manufacturer to their final destination (i.e. warehouses, supermarkets, etc.) Amid Omicron, the process has been disrupted due to low supply stemming from labor shortages and inflated freight costs. Additionally, loading docks have been backed up, stalling the unloading and delivery of cargo and contributing to delivery delays, which have been furthered by shortages in truck drivers and warehouse workers and surging prices in trucking rates and shipping.
Consequently, consumers across the country have noticed shortages of a variety of grocery items, including baby formula, cream cheese, aluminum (for canned drinks), and even Lunchables. Since shortages of products vary by region, I set out to see which items are out of stock in stores around the East Village. My first destination? The Target on 14th Street and Avenue A.
After speaking with a few employees, I learned that the store is facing major shortages in bread, dry pasta, and meat. As I perused the aisles, I noticed that cheese and fresh fruits were scarce, while most frozen goods, milk products, sauces, and granola bars were notably missing. Interestingly, many of the products were also left in disarray, possibly suggesting the rush customers were in to grab their items before they were gone.
Next on my list was the trusty Trader Joe’s at Union Square, which I also found to be disappointingly empty — you’d be lucky to find dry pasta, meatless meatballs, or oat milk (and if we’re getting specific, Tuscan kale). At the Whole Foods on Bowery, an employee (who has chosen to remain anonymous) listed some more eclectic products that have been difficult to acquire: marshmallows, powdered sugar, bananas, and certain canned goods.
However, he did mention that the recent shortages have not impacted product orders for suppliers. He explained that orders are placed “blindly,” with the hopes that the manufacturer will have all the goods in stock. In other words, the store’s shelves will be filled with all the regular items as soon as their suppliers have them in stock. He added that products such as soda can be substituted with similar versions from different brands, although he did not mention that soda in particular has been absent from stores due to the ongoing global aluminum shortage. As such, brand substitutions are not necessarily a viable option, unlike opting to buy glass or plastic bottles of your favorite soda brand, which remain widely available.
In an ideal world, a run-of-the-mill grocery store run won’t involve discussions about the nuances of product acquisition and the complications posed by a global pandemic, and Trader Joe’s will once again be a dependable source for groceries (or at least Tuscan kale). Hopefully, the dwindling rate of Omicron infection will help matters, though the possibility of future variants and strains remains an active threat. In the meantime, though, all we can do is hope for a future of unlimited pasta and oat milk, and try not to take the food that we do have access to for granted.
