HERSHEY WARNS THAT IT WON’T BE ABLE TO MEET HALLOWEEN DEMAND

Sweets lovers are in for a bad trick or treat this Halloween as there might be a shortage of their favourite sweets in the United States.

That’s according to Hershey CEO Michele Buck as she read prepared remarks around the company’s second-quarter results.

“We will not be able to fully meet consumer demand.”

This is because consumers are demanding more sweets than Hershey can produce at the moment.

CNN reports that many consumer goods manufacturers have been struggling to meet surging demand for their products during the pandemic, especially with the ongoing supply chain issues. That’s meant that they’ve had to reduce production of certain less popular items.

Not only have consumers been eating more candy during the pandemic, but every year the interest in Halloween increases and so does the demand for sweets to go trick or treating.

One of the major problems faced by Hershey is that they can’t produce regular and seasonal products at the same time as the company uses the same manufacturing lines for both. So, the manufacturing line can be used for either regular sweets or seasonal sweets, not both.

“We had a strategy of prioritising everyday on-shelf availability. That was a choice that we needed to make. It was a tough decision”, said Buck.

With Hershey not being able to meet demand, it’s great news for the company’s competitors as it means they would be able to take over some of the company’s market share this Halloween.

Image credit: CNN