Anyone who has been to a grocery store recently has seen the empty shelves. BUT at least the produce department looks 'normal' right now. How long can we expect our produce departments to look ‘normal’ for? What is happening behind the scenes? To answer these questions, I sat down with produce guru @themrproduce to get an industry insider's perspective.

Wow, where to start, JP...

As you know, there are some shortages and empty shelves in the world of fresh produce right now. Smaller footprint retailers are experiencing less of this than the large footprint stores who have a higher footfall.

That said, we can expect gaps in supply over the next week or 10 days, but DON'T PANIC - this should be a short-lived situation, and certainly not to the extent we saw with toilet paper wars.

The most heavily impacted shortages will be on bananas, packaged salads (and by extension - leaf lettuces, as shoppers look for alternatives to their pre-packaged preferences) onions and potatoes.

This is completely normal anytime there's been an extraordinary demand - the supply chain is set up to deliver based on historical data, rather than a 30% volume increase.

There are 4 main factors behind the scenes right now, beyond anyone's control, which are affecting our supply and pricing in the short term.

What we CAN'T control:

Green veggies, and nightshades (tomatoes, cukes, eggplant), of all types are typically grown in the desert regions of Arizona and Mexico in the winter (rather than the salad bowl of California). These areas have been hit with multiple weeks of unseasonably cold weather and rain. Many fields are flooded making harvest difficult and quality can be suspect in some cases. This scenario always puts pressure on the market from the supply perspective - there is less being produced, it's of lower quality, and it takes longer to harvest. It also costs the Grower much more through inefficiencies, and this is reflected by higher costs through the supply chain. Within a few weeks, California should be ready to harvest (fingers crossed that no weather events occur to cause a delay, and there are enough workers).
Many of these operations are staffed by Migrant workers who travel across the border from Mexico on a daily basis. Now however, many are staying home in self isolation, so there's a worker shortage for both harvest and production facilities. Fewer hands make for more work and slower fulfillment rates.
Logistics are a challenge - there is a shortage of suitable trucks and drivers on the road. Because people panic bought, there is an under-supply of product. Consequently, some of the mega-chains are offering bonuses to Drivers to walk away from their regular routes, drive for them, in order to protect their own supply chain. In some cases, BC wholesalers/retailers are now sending empty trucks to the South from BC just to secure pickup of product. That long-haul run costs an extra $2000 - $3500 per load (about $5 per case).
The CDN$ is trading very low. For imported produce to arrive in YVR we have to pay the Grower, sometimes a Broker, the Transport company, all in US$, then pay taxes and duty. That's quite a financial impact on our fresh produce.

So in the (I say again) SHORT TERM, we're likely to see some minor shortages, and from smaller Retailers (those who don't have locked-in seasonal contracts with Distributors) some price increases due to market demands.

What we CAN control:

Buy as much as you need. If you can't find what you normally shop for, check online for a recipe using something else in the department. Check back for out of stock items next time you’re in the store. In the interest of staying at home - shop less often, shop with a list, and shop for others if you are able.
Don't pick up and inspect produce if you don't intend to purchase. Unless something is visibly rotten, the product you see is as good as it gets right now. Be thankful.
Do not overbuy - unless you can dry, freeze, can, jar, or otherwise process all the fresh produce you can't eat in a few days, you're going to compost it, and that's just sad.
Do. Not. Panic. We are not going to run out of food.
Accept this as an opportunity to be truly thankful for fresh produce - the people who planted, tend, harvest, and ship it, and those who stock your shelves with it. Most of your produce department was provided by hand power, and we don't always acknowledge that.
When the BC local season hits, take a moment to think how important our local Growers are. They work as hard as anyone, in a shorter season, in an environment with far higher costs than South of us, while re-investing any profits they make back in the local economy. We should be supporting these Producers at every opportunity so they can be as sustainable as possible.
I can't stress this enough - please be sure to thank every employee you see in your favorite store for coming to work today. Retail Grocery wasn't viewed as an essential service when they started working there. Each of these people are the reason you have access to fresh food right now.

I think that's it for now JP.

To read @themrproduce first interview with me, click here.

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BC Grown: How to Shop Locally & Sustainably During COVID-19