“I can’t believe it’s not butter!”
Well, chili! First the lack of ketchup, chicken thighs, chicken wings, and now the lack of butter?! According to @nypost, “data from the US Department of Agriculture shows that avocado stockpiles in the US in August were down 10% from the previous month. However, it is down 22% from the same time a year ago.”
Midwest avocado producers say that “spot cream is very scarce to be unavailable” and that “in the Northeast, retail demand for avocados is growing, but tight inventories are causing some producers to Exporters must regulate supply on existing orders,” the report said.
The USDA report also said there were about 282 million pounds of avocados in stock last month, but that was down from 362 million pounds in 2021.
With inflation still on the rise, grocery costs are up nearly 14% but avocados are up nearly 25%.
The shortage of ketchup packets
In 2021, there is also a shortage of ketchup packets. According to CNN, restaurants have difficulty keeping condiments, especially packets of ketchup, in stock. This is reportedly because people are ordering more due to the pandemic.
CNN also reports that Heinz – the largest ketchup producer in the country – is in the midst of turmoil.
The company is working on adding “production lines that will increase production by about 25% to a total of more than 12 billion packages a year.”
“We made strategic investments in production at the start of the pandemic to keep up with the surge in demand for ketchup packets driven by the trend of quick delivery and takeout; At the same time, we are also fast-tracking future-focused culinary and packaging innovations, as well as further production expansion plans,” said Steve Cornell, president of Kraft Heinz, business unit specialty and away from home, said.
According to the Wall Street Journal, some people are actually selling their ketchup packets online amid the pandemic.
