Photo: ©IQONCEPT – STOCK.ADOBE.COM KANSAS CITY — Accurately predicting commodity and ingredient prices in January for the year ahead is nearly impossible, but it is helpful to look at the factors that are expected to influence those markets. The three most obvious market movers are COVID-19 (still), war and weather, with the latter always a key factor on a regional if not on a global scale. COVID is not going away anytime soon. After being discovered in late 2019, it came to global prominence in 2020 and by late 2021 had claimed more than 4.6 million lives from more than 200 million confirmed cases. It impacted many aspects of food production, distribution and consumption during that time, with some impact still evident as cases remain highly problematic in China. The pandemic’s impact on labor and logistics still is being sorted as those influential market elements seek a post-pandemic normal. Freight rates (mainly truck and ocean) have fallen sharply from COVID-induced record highs and are expected to continue to moderate in 2023. Labor is another matter, with nearly all industries (food processors and manufacturers included) noting some level of ongoing worker shortages adversely affecting output. Most prognosticators don’t see the […]
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