David Zalubowski/Associated Press
- Peppermint-flavored candy canes are reportedly hard to find.
- US peppermint production has been fallen about 25% over the last decade.
- This year, there’s the supply chain crisis to contend with as well, as demand outstrips supply.
Some places are seeing a peppermint-flavored candy cane shortage just days ahead of Christmas.
Candy canes are the latest holiday product hit by a raw material shortage and the supply chain crisis.
“We only received half of our candy cane order for the holiday season and sold out almost immediately. We currently have zero in stock,” Mitchell Cohen, owner of Economy Candy, told the New York Post. “Raw material and ingredient shortages globally have had quite an impact.”
It’s the first time the store has run out of candy canes in its 84-year history. “Since candy canes were invented, we’ve had candy canes,” Cohen added.
The US is the world’s top producer of peppermint oil, accounting for 70% of the global output, according to the University of Nebraska’s Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
But production has been fallen about 25% over the last decade, according to the US Department of Agriculture. In 2020, production was down 9% from the year before. Crop production over the years has been hit by various factors, including a persistent fungal disease, according to The Counter.
This year, there’s the supply chain crisis to contend with as well, as holiday demand outstrips supply.
“As you walk through a lot of stores you won’t see the quantity and quality of items you are accustomed to seeing,” Patrick Penfield, professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management, told USA Today, citing cream cheese, peppermint, and imported foods as examples of holiday items impacted by the crisis.
The peppermint crunch has not just hit candy sellers but anyone using the ingredient in their food preparation, like speciality coffee maker Park Avenue Coffee in Missouri.
“I mean, we order peppermint in November. We always order peppermint in November and it always comes in, you know, the first week in December, we’re good to go,” owner Dale Schotte told KSDK. “Not this year.”
The knock-on effect of the supply chain crisis means the peppermint shortage could spill over.
“We can’t really do a gingerbread house without a candy cane tree, a candy cane door, or candy cane anything,” Cohen told The Post.
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