Great ideas if you have time but many closures are immediate - think hurricane or other national disasters. It’s important to pull the entire cross functional team together and get alternatives ideas generated quickly. If you don’t move fast (think hours, not days) your competitors will. Set up a command center with a clear leader with access to top management to clear hurdles and barriers.

There are a few things to truly create supply chain agility in this case. Many of which are PROACTIVE! Optimizing the entire working capital structure in staggering inventory purchases and optimizing payment terms accordingly. This will reduce the financial drain on any maintained inventory buffer. These buffers should be adjusted with anticipated production and demand, particularly for seasonal swings. In addition, multiple suppliers for key ingredients should be maintained. There is also value in exploring alternative ingredients to maximize flexibility. A critical decision on quality must be made in this instance. When these types of substitutions are made it may be necessary to adjust pricing as well. Stay agile, stay flexible.

First, I'd say it's good to be innovative. I had a similar challenge long ago when I was working with a wine company. The supply of one of our ingredients was said to be going on hold by the country of supply. This is a key ingredient that contributes to the appearance of the wine. In order not to halt production, the situation was managed by carrying out research to formulate ingredient that would match up with the ingredient being imported. Other ways to manage this situation are; - mass stock your ingredients for future purpose - identify and partner with different suppliers - fund research or carry out research to find alternatives for key ingredients

When dealing with suppliers, I always conduct thorough market research to identify all potential suppliers of raw materials in my region. This flexibility allows me to quickly adapt to unexpected challenges. Additionally, I ensure that every product we produce is broken down into its constituent raw materials for easy identification and traceability. In the food industry, this approach is crucial for maintaining quality and efficiency.

The key is to have an optimum of three suppliers for the same ingredient. This will help navigate the closure of any key supplier seamlessly. Ensure the procurement team always scans for new ingredient suppliers and tests samples.