Bloomberg reports that a scarcity of warehouse space could lead to food shortages. It says Christmas demand and the pandemic is putting the UK at risk as it prepares to leave the European Union’s single market.
With five weeks to go before the end of the Brexit transition period, large manufacturers and industry groups are warning that the capacity of the food supply chain is at its peak and can’t withstand any further shocks.
Unilever, the maker of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Hellmann’s Mayonnaise, said it is building up stock of key lines but “warehouses are absolutely full”.
Like rival Nestle, the maker of Kit Kats and Nescafe coffee, maintaining supply of finished products and ingredients is now the priority as talks between Britain and the EU on a trade deal remain deadlocked. Yet that’s “with stock building more difficult at this busy time of year,” Nestle said.