The novel coronavirus has blanketed the world at a very fast rate and has made organizations to take emergency action in the interest of public health all across the globe. SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, is a virus that majorly affects respiratory illness. As per the US FDA, currently, there are no shreds of evidence of food or food packaging linked with transmission of the novel coronavirus. The industry is prone to witness a dual impact from the global outbreak, that is, in terms of supply chain disruptions as well as domestic sales. Moreover, several food safety bodies such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), and others are performing several R&D for the reassurance.
The food and beverage manufacturers in Europe and the US are closing corporate offices and encouraging their staff to work from home to minimize the risk of getting infected. Numerous food and beverage manufacturers having foreign production facilities in China, Italy, and other locations where coronavirus has disrupted the production and supply chain, and in turn affect the economies. As an estimate, during the outbreak, the overall food and beverage sector may face a loss of nearly 40% in revenues. For instance, the coffee shop chain, Starbucks, that has almost 4,300 outlets in China, that is, one of the largest markets outside the US has closed its more than 2,000 Chinese branches. Apart from this, the supply chain has also witnessed a considerable disruption as the raw materials are scarce. For instance, Coca-Cola Co. declared that the shipments of sucralose, an artificial sweetener from China have been postponed due to the pandemic. The company sources sucralose from both the US and China, however, has flagged that Chinese suppliers have experienced delays in production and export.
Despite, the outbreak, restaurants and other food providers braces for significant changes resulting from recommended social distancing. For instance, in China, food delivery companies are enhancing their home delivery options as a sizable drop in brick-and-mortar restaurant sales has been observed, as peoples are preferring at-home ordering. Due to this, the manufacturers are getting engaged in significant changes in their current approach, by considering diversions to substitute sourcing locations, and an increased focus on inventory management. Though the recent outbreak of coronavirus has made numerous restaurants and food-related companies to shut, some major companies continue to work and adopt heightened care to ensure the cleanliness of the workstations and hands. Some of the fast-food restaurants including Subway, Dunkin’, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Wendy’s, Domino’s, Dairy Queen, and Little Caesars are still operating in the countries. While, restaurants that have closed dining room seating, still allows users to purchase items takeout, home delivery, and mobile order options include Chipotle, KFC, McDonald’s, Popeyes, Starbucks.
OMR global recently published a report titled ‘Impact of COVID-19 on Food & Beverage Industry’ addressing the impact of COVID-19 on the food & beverage industry. The report includes analyses of different regions and countries. The food & beverage sector has been largely affected, moreover, a surge in cases in Europe and North America in March 2020 has affected the food & beverage industry of these regions also. In the report, an expected recovery timeline of the industry will be provided with the best- and worst-case scenario which will aid the companies to take their future steps in the global food & beverage industry.
