Impact of the Global Pandemic on Wholesale Food Supply: Aspects to Ponder

With people locked down at home, the demand for grocery items – and the delivery of those items surged considerably. According to reports, the demand for non-perishable foods has jumped by up to 84% since February. This surge has a ripple effect that begins with the production, then moving to wholesale food suppliers in Texas, food distribution, in-store shopping, grocery store stocking, home delivery, and curbside pickup.

Wholesale Food Distribution is Crucial

Wholesale food distribution has played a crucial role in making all the regular use products available to people. It became essential for the wholesale companies to employ additional resources and technology to supply the needed stocks following all social distancing and sanitization norms.

Predicting What’s Next in Consumer Demand

Many of the leading companies in the grocery space are running data-backed predictions showing what demand may look like in the coming weeks. All the food distributors should be leveraging data to inform the stock they request from suppliers and the proper distribution of those goods once they are available. This forward-looking approach serves to safeguard food distribution businesses and their customers, from convenience stores to households.

Eyeing Huge Opportunities

Despite the global crises or perhaps because of it, tremendous opportunities have also emerged for wholesale distributors to continue to drive their revenue and profit. Many companies are also finding new customers and opening fresh sales channels. For instance, foodservice distributors are selling directly to groceries and ghost kitchens. Several distributors are carrying brand new products like personal protective equipment (PPE) and even launching private labels.

Leverage Data for Long-Term Planning

With the statistics gathered throughout the coronavirus epidemic, food distribution businesses can discover insights that will help them to prepare them for any upcoming surge in consumer demand. Some of the early indicators, such as the sharp increase in demand for one category or item like medical masks, can alert suppliers and distributors to the increased demands that will likely follow suit.

Changes to Look for in the Long Run

It is worth considering that the COVID‐19 pandemic will have longer-term effects on the nature of food supply chains. Fulfilling online orders requires appropriate investments in regards to infrastructure, staffing, and delivery capacity. Robust, secure, and reliable supply chain relationships are vital to enhancing supply chain resilience. Collaborative buyer-seller relationships develop trust among supply chain partners and flexibility in responding to unexpected shifts in demand or unanticipated supply disruptions. Once the dust settles on the pandemic, wholesale food supply chain stakeholders will have an opportunity to reflect on what worked well, where failures occurred, and how they can build more robust supply chain partnerships to weather future problems.

However, with Wencar by your side, you can rest assured to get all that is needed at your doorstep to run your store.