Tag: year ahead

Consumers are not happy with high food prices, and many believe they are artificially high.

A frequent topic throughout 2023 was rising costs throughout the supply chain.

Related to the environment and being better stewards of the planet is packaging.

While it’s true weather has always been unpredictable, the last few years have proven this is now a vast understatement—with devastating weather events seeming to be the new normal.

“Labor issues are starting to stabilize, but they remain a real concern for most retailers and suppliers I speak with,” says Kevin Brooks, of Procurant

“Retailers are gaining experience with AI, but they still don’t have a good handle on it,” says Phil Lempert, the Los Angeles, CA-based Supermarket Guru.

As the produce industry continued to find its equilibrium in 2023, issues like artificial intelligence, climate change, labor, and food safety affected everyone along the supply chain.

A number of questions face the industry when it comes to consumer behavior in 2022.

Labor shortages, food delivery and click-and-collect, and other trends are accelerating the need for technology.

Numerous studies have identified plant-based eating—from full-on veganism to a casual reduction in meat consumption through plant-based substitutes—as gaining traction in 2020 and 2021.