Issue # 11 - Balancing consumer demand with supply vulnerabilities in a growing modern world.

With recent global volatilities, food supply chains are more vulnerable than ever. The recent CrowdStrike cybersecurity incident, together with the extreme weather events from last winter, reminded us of the significant risks to the stability and reliability of these supply chains.

This vulnerability, combined with a growing global population demand, poses a difficult challenge to our current food system: How can the food industry ensure the availability, safety, and affordability of food in the face of these persistent disruptions and pressures?

How Modern Threats Can Impact Food Supply?

Cybersecurity Incidents – Now more than ever many companies are embracing technology to automate processes, allowing them to be faster, slicker and more efficient. But what happens when these digital systems are compromised? The severe downsides could become more apparent, as we are yet to see the impact on the food supply of the recent Crowdstrike outage that caused the cancellation of over 1,000 flights globally.

Extreme Weather - In the UK, recent torrential downpours and flooding have significantly impacted local agriculture. Other suppliers are also facing similar weather conditions affecting the import of many products commonly consumed in the UK such as olive oil supply from Europe now running low and cocoa supply anticipated to decline by almost 11% to 4.449 million tonnes, risking supply chains and availability.

Global factors – Major disruption on a global scale including pandemics, war, and concerns over natural security reducing cooperation between countries impacting the availability of ingredients as we’ve witnessed with the invasion of Ukraine with grain exports being severely disrupted.

Mitigating Food’s Supply Vulnerabilities

So far, the industry has mitigated supply disruptions through various methods, including by using processes to help with shelf stability of the foods allowing them to keep fresh for longer, reducing spoilage, as well as allowing an easier distribution of such foods. However, with health concerns rising from the debate on ultra-processed foods, the industry may be more conscious than ever of informing consumers about the transparency in their label declarations to boost consumer confidence.

The increasing demand for transparency and healthy products during this last decade indeed puts the food industry under pressure when supply chains are disrupted. How can constant innovation meet these expectations? One answer lies in the development and use of functional ingredients that prolong shelf stability, reduce spoilage, and cater to the demand for healthier and more sustainable foods.

Additionally, a shift towards more plant-based diets could help mitigate already stretched food supplies

Conclusion

Ensuring a stable and resilient food supply chain is paramount in today's complex global landscape. Modern threats extreme, weather incidents, and geopolitical instability underscore the vulnerabilities in our current system, and therefore the food industry must adopt a balanced approach that leverages both processed and functional foods. Enhancing foods to ensure a steady supply, even during disruptions can be effective. Also, reinforcing the message that functional foods offer nutritional benefits and sustainability would help to meet the growing consumer demand for healthier options while better safeguarding food availability, safety, and affordability for a growing global population.

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