The coronavirus exposed the supply chain management for its fragility. This article, published by the Journal of Public Policy and Marketing exclaims that before the virus even made its way into the US, “95% of Fortune 1,000 companies had global supply chain operations in China and were experiencing […] inventory flow reductions,” (Esper). Hoarding and unpredictable demands have also caused, a wave of general unreliability for many distribution chains.
COVID-19 is currently changing the system by heavily increasing the demand of online ordering/shipping. The paper explains that timeliness and quality of order are the most important aspects. This is also true with food pantries. Most food pantry managers know exactly when their shipments are supposed to arrive, and they are expecting a certain level of quality for all the foods.
This level of transparency and reliability is highly influential on the success of a food pantry. More areas of research should be conducted as to how much knowledge can be shared from the distributor to the food pantry. It is also unknown how customers would respond to more transparent information being offered to them.
Lastly, the paper mentions that there have been concerns for the delivery drivers where safety precautions might not be met. This was another reason for many distribution problems in the US. Acknowledging and protecting all people involved in the food supply chain during this project is essential.
