Panic Buying Frenzy Triggers Massive Food Shortages As Chaos Sweeps Across Supply Chains

Grocers are blaming the new shortages on a fresh wave of panic buying and continued supply chain issues, reporting that the 2020 toilet paper wars are back in many of the country’s supermarkets. As infection numbers rise, store shelves across the nation are getting increasingly barer, with consumers complaining that bread, meat, fresh produce, and shelf-stable items have become impossible to find. A Walmart spokesperson who remained in anonymity told CNBC that panic buying was seriously aggravating the problem of supply shortages, especially because every time shelves were restocked, ’consumers would wipe everything down in record time’. The source also said that the giant retailer is currently experiencing direct impacts of supply chain disruptions, including reduced transport capacity and warehouse worker shortages. At the same time, in an attempt to fill in the gaps left on the shelves, supermarkets are turning to different, less popular brands than they normally would stock to at least provide some option