2021 Supply Disruptions

[Rothman]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

[kalvado]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

[Rothman]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

Well, the idea that potatoes have the same culinary distinctions as wine is funny.

[kalvado]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

Well, the idea that potatoes have the same culinary distinctions as wine is funny.

Even our local Hannaford can easily have 4-5 types. Yellow aka Yukon Gold, white, russet, red, purple. Difference in starch conformation (branching factor) and content are pretty obvious.
And different cultivars do require different growth conditions..

[Rothman]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

Well, the idea that potatoes have the same culinary distinctions as wine is funny.

Even our local Hannaford can easily have 4-5 types. Yellow aka Yukon Gold, white, russet, red, purple. Difference in starch conformation (branching factor) and content are pretty obvious.
And different cultivars do require different growth conditions..

Yes, different potatoes are...different.  We're not talking cultivars here, though (like broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts...all brassica oleracea -- the same species), but different species altogether. 

Potato growing states are as varied as Idaho and Maine, so can't be that picky.  Russets in particular are grown in all sorts of places.

I'd place my bet on lack of decent land in Japan, more than difference of climate and the like.

[kalvado]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

Well, the idea that potatoes have the same culinary distinctions as wine is funny.

Even our local Hannaford can easily have 4-5 types. Yellow aka Yukon Gold, white, russet, red, purple. Difference in starch conformation (branching factor) and content are pretty obvious.
And different cultivars do require different growth conditions..

Yes, different potatoes are...different.  We're not talking cultivars here, though (like broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts...all brassica oleracea -- the same species), but different species altogether. 

Potato growing states are as varied as Idaho and Maine, so can't be that picky.  Russets in particular are grown in all sorts of places.

I'd place my bet on lack of decent land in Japan, more than difference of climate and the like.

Land scarcity in Japan is a sure thing. However total Japanese potato harvest is half of that of Canada or 10% of US (and 3x more than  Maine - 10th state in the list).  They could easily go with China - largest world producer; or some other countries in the region. But for some reason, they choose to bring potatoes across the ocean.

[Rothman]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

Well, the idea that potatoes have the same culinary distinctions as wine is funny.

Even our local Hannaford can easily have 4-5 types. Yellow aka Yukon Gold, white, russet, red, purple. Difference in starch conformation (branching factor) and content are pretty obvious.
And different cultivars do require different growth conditions..

Yes, different potatoes are...different.  We're not talking cultivars here, though (like broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts...all brassica oleracea -- the same species), but different species altogether. 

Potato growing states are as varied as Idaho and Maine, so can't be that picky.  Russets in particular are grown in all sorts of places.

I'd place my bet on lack of decent land in Japan, more than difference of climate and the like.

Land scarcity in Japan is a sure thing. However total Japanese potato harvest is half of that of Canada or 10% of US (and 3x more than  Maine - 10th state in the list).  They could easily go with China - largest world producer; or some other countries in the region. But for some reason, they choose to bring potatoes across the ocean.

I thought they purchased farms in Russia to ensure supplies there after the Curtain fell.

[kalvado]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

But would the taste and texture conform to McDonald's specs?

Heh.  Do potatoes need DOP, IGP, IGT, DOC and DOCG certifications? 

You think you are being funny, right?

Well, the idea that potatoes have the same culinary distinctions as wine is funny.

Even our local Hannaford can easily have 4-5 types. Yellow aka Yukon Gold, white, russet, red, purple. Difference in starch conformation (branching factor) and content are pretty obvious.
And different cultivars do require different growth conditions..

Yes, different potatoes are...different.  We're not talking cultivars here, though (like broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts...all brassica oleracea -- the same species), but different species altogether. 

Potato growing states are as varied as Idaho and Maine, so can't be that picky.  Russets in particular are grown in all sorts of places.

I'd place my bet on lack of decent land in Japan, more than difference of climate and the like.

Land scarcity in Japan is a sure thing. However total Japanese potato harvest is half of that of Canada or 10% of US (and 3x more than  Maine - 10th state in the list).  They could easily go with China - largest world producer; or some other countries in the region. But for some reason, they choose to bring potatoes across the ocean.

I thought they purchased farms in Russia to ensure supplies there after the Curtain fell.

If it is in the European part of Russia, Canada may actually be a closer location to Japan to ship from. If not geographically (which it still may be), but logistically for sure.

[Brandon]

Land scarcity in Japan is a sure thing. However total Japanese potato harvest is half of that of Canada or 10% of US (and 3x more than  Maine - 10th state in the list).  They could easily go with China - largest world producer; or some other countries in the region. But for some reason, they choose to bring potatoes across the ocean.

China cannot produce, strange as it may seem, enough food for themselves and must import from other countries, including the US.  For example, a large percentage of the soybeans China uses actually come from Illinois.

[1995hoo]

Today's trip to the grocery store suggests cat food is the next toilet paper.

[kalvado]

Today's trip to the grocery store suggests cat food is the next toilet paper.

Seen the same thing for past few weeks. Chewy still seems to be doing OK, though

[Brandon]

Today's trip to the grocery store suggests cat food is the next toilet paper.

Has been for months now.  One of the big problems here is a lack of aluminum for the cans.

[hbelkins]

Pet food (cat and dog, canned and dry) has been an item in short supply locally in our three dollar stores (two Dollar Generals and one Family Dollar) for months, and there have been some shortages at the nearest Walmart as well.

Laundry supplies (detergent, fabric softener, dryer sheets, fragrance crystals, etc.) have also been a scarce item around here for a few months.

[LM117]

Apparently, some pharmacies are having trouble getting prescriptions in stock. I tried to get a refill of Losartan the other day at the Walmart pharmacy, and I got told that it was backordered and wouldn't be available for 2 weeks. They told me I could wait 2 weeks, or they could transfer my prescription to Walgreens or CVS. I couldn't wait 2 weeks since I was almost out, so I told them to send it to Walgreens since I wanted to avoid using CVS if at all possible since I've had nothing but trouble with them in the past. Walmart later calls me back and said that Walgreens' computer system was down, so they had to send it to CVS.

Of course, it didn't take long for CVS to fuck up. They filled my prescription, but they told me I don't have any more refills left after this, which is bullshit, so I gotta try to straighten that out tomorrow. If Walmart ever gets their stock issues fixed, I'm switching back to them, pronto.

[triplemultiplex]

In Japan, McDonald's is only selling their smallest size of french fries, blaming the floods in British Columbia and the general supply crunch.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/22/mcdonalds-rations-fries-in-japan-due-to-potato-shortage

Huh.  I thought McDonald's liked to set up local production of their supplies.  I guess in Japan that just wasn't possible (the old story of Japan continues).

They could always buy American.  Wonder why they weren't importing from Simplot, unless those potatoes were needed for American stores.

As far as I remember, they use potatoes which doesn't grow in Asian climate, so they ship from US/canada. During some previous disruption, they even airlifted it from US.

If potatoes will grow on Mars, they'll grow in Japan or China.

I once had a teacher say, somewhat facetiously, that if you stopped vacuuming a carpet, you could grow potatoes there.

[ErmineNotyours]

Today when I pulled up to a McDonald's drive-thru speaker, they had temporary signs taped to the ordering area saying "Cash only."  I had almost tried curbside ordering because of the line, but I have the cash.  Once I got up to the first window, they now weren't even accepting cash from anyone and was giving away food for free.  I'll have to donate $10 to Ronald McDonald house next time I'm inside or see a slot outside.

[Scott5114]

Whatever that was, it wasn't a supply disruption. I'm guessing their credit card system was down. Then, by the time you got to the window, either the district manager had given the order to go ahead and close the store until it came back up, or everyone had gotten so much abuse for not accepting credit cards that the whole crew said fuck it and decided to quit en masse and handed out the remaining orders for free to go out in a blaze of glory.

[kalvado]

An interesting comment:
https://www.axios.com/cars-shortage-made-to-order-35d24a0f-690b-43f4-aa3a-3f65aef2969c.html
Basically message is pre-ordering cars to exact customer configuration is a better option for manufacturer. And a change in strategy can be made in near future due to supply shortage and lack of inventory.
But quite a few people want to drive exact same car before paying for it. Would it boil down to couple of representative configurations still available for test drive, or how would they deal with test driving?

[abefroman329]

Apparently, some pharmacies are having trouble getting prescriptions in stock. I tried to get a refill of Losartan the other day at the Walmart pharmacy, and I got told that it was backordered and wouldn't be available for 2 weeks. They told me I could wait 2 weeks, or they could transfer my prescription to Walgreens or CVS. I couldn't wait 2 weeks since I was almost out, so I told them to send it to Walgreens since I wanted to avoid using CVS if at all possible since I've had nothing but trouble with them in the past. Walmart later calls me back and said that Walgreens' computer system was down, so they had to send it to CVS.

Of course, it didn't take long for CVS to fuck up. They filled my prescription, but they told me I don't have any more refills left after this, which is bullshit, so I gotta try to straighten that out tomorrow. If Walmart ever gets their stock issues fixed, I'm switching back to them, pronto.

If you have one of those online pharmacies in your neck of the woods such as Capsule, I highly recommend it.  Better (and cheaper) than CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, or any brick-and-mortar-pharmacy.

[vdeane]

An interesting comment:
https://www.axios.com/cars-shortage-made-to-order-35d24a0f-690b-43f4-aa3a-3f65aef2969c.html
Basically message is pre-ordering cars to exact customer configuration is a better option for manufacturer. And a change in strategy can be made in near future due to supply shortage and lack of inventory.
But quite a few people want to drive exact same car before paying for it. Would it boil down to couple of representative configurations still available for test drive, or how would they deal with test driving?

Yeah, I can't say I'm on board with the "custom order, wait a month, hope there aren't issues" model.  While Tesla's QA/QC issues are legendary, other automakers have them too, and as such you don't get to know what you're buying.  And it eliminates the "buy at the tail end of the model year to get a great deal as the dealer is frantically trying to get cars off the lot" tactic.  From what I've heard, people trying to buy EVs from traditional automakers who are pushing this model are paying through the nose as the dealer has every incentive to raise the price and no incentives to lower it.

I wonder if this would have the silver lining of prolonging the ability to buy a manual, as manufacturers could only make them as needed rather than have a whole production run.

[hbelkins]

In my lifetime, my dad bought four new vehicles (1967, 1979, 1990, and 1998). Each time, he ordered the vehicle. By the time he bought the last one, individual options had been discontinued in favor of packages. In order to get something that he really wanted on the 1998 Chevy truck, he had to get a bunch of stuff he didn't want (power windows, power locks, etc.)

I test-drove every vehicle I ever bought except my 1994 Saturn. I drove one like it, but to get what I wanted, the dealer had to do a swap. They drove a car from Lexington to St. Louis that someone there wanted, and drove mine back to Lexington for me.

[7/8]

Today when I pulled up to a McDonald's drive-thru speaker, they had temporary signs taped to the ordering area saying "Cash only."  I had almost tried curbside ordering because of the line, but I have the cash.  Once I got up to the first window, they now weren't even accepting cash from anyone and was giving away food for free.  I'll have to donate $10 to Ronald McDonald house next time I'm inside or see a slot outside.

At my closest McDonald's, they've had been out of pop, ice cream, and smoothies for several weeks! They have a sign saying so, but if you're doing drive-thru, the sign isn't until the order window (so it's too late the back out then). It doesn't leave much choices for drinks lol. I can imagine the abuse the employees are getting.

[triplemultiplex]

The universe is giving us a sign to consume less McDonalds.

[kevinb1994]

The universe is giving us a sign to consume less McDonalds.

And more Culver's

Just saw a Culver's commercial tonight.

[ZLoth]

From KDFW:

Cold medicine shortage: COVID surge, flu season leading to empty shelves

New COVID infections continue to shoot up at a rapid pace, and the spread is running right into cold and flu season.

It's all leading to another shortage on store shelves: cold medicine.

Shoppers across DFW are encountering shelves that are empty or close to it.

One employee at an East Dallas pharmacy called it "the new toilet paper shortage."

FULL ARTICLE HERE