Food Supply Chain Fragile Due To Omicron, Truck Driver Shortages
HALIFAX–Some Halifax grocery stores ran out of produce and other items last weekend after a major storm hit the city.
The ongoing truck driver shortage and Friday’s nasty weather led to delivery delays for many grocery retailers.
Further complications came after the Cobequid Pass was shut down due to reduced visibility and a crash snarled traffic on the critical transport corridor.
A number of factors are putting pressure on supply chains right now and that’s caught the attention of Dalhousie’s professor in food distribution and policy.
Sylvain Charlebois says the food supply chain is fragile right now due to Omicron and tweeted this week that a vaccine mandate for truck drivers could not be coming at a worse time.
“Canada imports about $21 billion worth of agri-food products from the United States every year, and about 60 to 70 percent of the food imported arrives on wheels,” Charlebois wrote.
New entry requirements, set to begin on Jan. 15, mean truck drivers will only be allowed to enter the country if they are fully vaccinated with one of the vaccines approved for entry into Canada.
“The reality is we could potentially lose 10 to 20 percent of drivers if this goes into effect,” said Jean-Marc Picard, executive director of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association.
Picard believes the long-standing worker shortage in the industry has been “manageable” to this point, but that will change come mid-January. As for the direct effect it will have on Canadians, he said consumers can expect to see the price of goods continue to rise.
Steve MacArthur is the news director with CKHZ 103.5 in Halifax, a Huddle content partner.