Can The Food Supply Chain Handle Another Ketchup Shortage?

The COVID-19 pandemic caused many issues with the supply chain, and these issues caused a ketchup shortage. Kraft Heinz has been struggling significantly with these shortages, causing a trickle-down effect on restaurants.

Voice of B2B, Daniel Litwin, talked with Christine Cochran, Executive Director of Grain Foods Foundation (GFF) and Ryan Richard, Vice President, Community Engagement of GS1 US on Marketscale TV. The trio talked about these issues and how the supply chain can be built with resiliency.

 

Long John Silver’s and Texas Roadhouse are among the restaurants seeing shortages of ketchup. Numerous other small and large eateries are also having issues with Kraft Heinz, as there have been issues with their production.  LJS reportedly had to spend an extra $500,000 on ketchup packets because they couldn’t use bottles on tables. Texas Roadhouse turned to wholesalers due to Kraft Heinz not being able to meet demand.

“It’s definitely driving the cost up, as that’s what we’re seeing out there in the industry,” Richard said.

This isn’t the first time restaurants have seen issues with the supply chain. One prominent example being the 2018 E-Coli scare in romaine lettuce. Heinz is increasing production up 25 percent to fight this shortage, which is around an extra 12 billion ketchup packets a year.

“We always look at our supply chains as agile, but what this is really demonstrating is how fragile these supply chains really are,” Richard said.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

 

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

design
Where Design Meets Durability: Why Commercial Surfaces Must Support Safety, Cleanability, and Long-Term Value
June 8, 2026

When a commercial space fails, it often fails quietly: a lobby floor that becomes slippery when wet, a hotel bathroom that is difficult to clean, a healthcare surface that cannot withstand constant disinfection, or an office finish that looks great until afternoon glare makes the room uncomfortable. These are not purely aesthetic problems; they are…

Read More
creative career
Crafted Journey How To: Building a Creative Career Across Scripts, Stages, and Sound
June 8, 2026

Creative careers rarely move in a straight line, especially for writers working across stage, screen, audio, books, and independent film. Sustaining that kind of life often means finding opportunities wherever they appear, building a strong network, staying open to different formats, and saying yes to collaborations that can lead somewhere unexpected. The stakes are…

Read More
EMR
EMR Strategy, Consulting, and Career Pivots with MedSys Co-Founder Mark Embry
June 8, 2026

Electronic medical records (EMRs) have moved from a back-office upgrade to a frontline determinant of care quality, clinician burnout, and hospital economics. With U.S. hospitals often spending tens to hundreds of millions—sometimes exceeding $100 million—on EMR implementations, the stakes have never been higher for getting both the technology and the human adoption right. As…

Read More
radiology
Growing Without Compromise: How Vision Radiology Balances Scale, AI, and Clinical Quality
June 4, 2026

Radiology sits at the center of a modern healthcare squeeze: imaging volumes are climbing, hospitals need faster reads, and there simply are not enough radiologists to meet demand the old way. At the same time, remote work and AI are reshaping what a clinical practice can look like. The challenge is no longer whether…

Read More