Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Photo: Scott Heins/Getty Images
While industry giants reassure shoppers there is enough food during the coronavirus pandemic, people continue to be met with empty supermarket shelves due to stresses on established supply chains, the Washington Post reports.
The state of play: With restaurants closed, distributors are struggling to retool their product from bulk supply for restaurants and industrial-scale operations to smaller, consumer-focused packaging as Americans cook from home.
- Food facilities are also having to combat coronavirus outbreaks of their own. JBA SA, the world's top meat company, had to close a beef facility in Colorado, and Smithfield Foods did the same at a pork processing plant in South Dakota.
The big picture: The supply chain demands aren't limited to food. The Post notes that hair dye is an increasingly popular product this week as people miss scheduled salon appointments.
The bottom line: "The stress on the production system is everywhere. We can’t hire more people to build up our lines. We have certain limitations, and all of the infrastructure is under stress, from the fisherman to the clerk putting cans on the shelf," Sean Wittenberg, the president of Safe Catch, which specializes in packaged fish, told the Post.