We’re more than two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, and we continue to see its impact on the global supply chain. Shutdowns, increasing demands, and labor shortages have all contributed to the supply chain disruption. From food to cars, here are 10 items that have been impacted most due to COVID-related supply chain issues:

1. Potatoes: This shortage has caused several international fast food chains like McDonald’s to pause sales of large and medium French fries in an effort to keep the product from selling out.
2. Sriracha: Huy Fong Inc., the company who makes Sriracha, announced in June that chili peppers continue to be in very short supply since the start of the pandemic, but droughts and climate change in chili-growing regions are making the shortage more severe.
3. Tampons: Labor shortages at U.S. factories and transportation bottlenecks due to China’s production lockdown are causing this shortage. In addition, rising costs of key materials like cotton, rayon, and plastic which are used to make the tampons products are also making things challenges for companies.
4. Microchips: Due to the pandemic, there was a global shortage of microchips, which has upended manufacturers’ ability to make everything from cars to computers to appliances to video game consoles. Interestingly, the rapid production of COVID vaccines ate even more into the global supply of silicon, affecting the supply of chips.
5. Vehicles: Due to the microchip shortage, cars are also in short supply—both new and used vehicles. This shortage brought higher prices on cars with more consumers paying MSRP or prices well above sticker. Used vehicle prices also jumped nearly 40 percent due to a surge in demand.
6. Lumber: As people sought out new homes during the pandemic, the demand for lumber increased—also leading to a rise in cost.
7. Foam: After the pandemic shutdown, supply-chain and manufacturing problems hit the furniture industry. Anything that uses foam had to halt production leaving furniture stores and consumers waiting weeks or even month for products.
8. Toilet paper: At the start of the pandemic, toilet paper was in high demand—shooting up as much as 845 percent—as the product flew off store shelves.
9. Bicycles: Demand in bikes boomed during the pandemic as more people took up new hobbies and outdoor activities. Production has had a difficult time keeping up with this demand, in addition to orders also being delayed due to larger supply chain issues.
10. Baby Formula: The main cause is of formula shortage is because of supply chain issues at both the production and shipping levels, in addition to U.S. factories shutting down and recalls based on harmful ingredients found in the products.

Additional factors like climate change and regional conflicts have put a strain on the supply chain as well. For example, when Russia first invaded the Ukraine, oil was immediately impacted—increasing costs and shortages globally.

There are ways you can prevent severe damage to your supply chain in the event of a catastrophic events. At Avetta, we’re helping some of the world's largest companies manage and protect their supply chains through risk management, worker qualifications, and more.

To learn more about supply chain management visit our website, call 844-633-3801, or email blog@avetta.com.