Food for Thought - April 2020

Food & Beverage: Taking a Risk-Agnostic Approach to Supply Chain Problems

Whether to manage a pandemic or other risk, food and beverage companies need to understand their entire supply chains, identify vulnerabilities, and take action when problems arise.

A recent survey found that nearly 75% of companies with supply chains had experienced disruptions through mid-March 2020, with transportation restrictions among the main causes.

Food and beverage supply chains are only as strong as their weakest links, and a break at any point can effectively shut down a business anywhere in the world, including New Zealand. Together with COVID-19, several interconnected factors can pose significant threats to the industry’s supply chains:

• Severe weather and natural catastrophes 
• Increased geopolitical pressures
• Cyber and information security
• Product contamination and defects

Supply chain risks are both diverse and extensive. It may seem like a close-to-impossible task to have a plan in place for each of the potential risks that can affect your suppliers — and their own suppliers — and, in turn, disrupt your operations.

The good news is that you don’t have to. Instead, you should take a risk-agnostic approach to preparing a supply chain contingency plan. The first step is to identify your crucial products, ingredients, or services.

To learn more about how to effectively map your supply chain and understanding the key threats you may face along the way, download our full report.