We can all  recall 2020. It was the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and  grocery stores had little to nothing on the shelves. Everyone was hoarding food, paper towels and toilet paper, among other supplies, in their homes. 

Now that we are in 2022, you would think things  would start to go back to normal, yet  we are back in the same situation. The full shelves are quickly going close to empty, but this time, it’s not only COVID’s fault. Because of the labor shortage, we do not have enough truck drivers in the United States to get all of the food and home goods to the stores. 

The winter season is making it take even longer for the food products to get out to stores. With the weather changing, the roads are more dangerous to drive on which  takes longer for food and other things to get around. On top of that, with climate change, the snow slows down trucks, fires have been destroying crops like wheat, soybean and coffee, which means there is less product. “Parija Kavilanz, CNN Business” 

Moreover, while  it’s already hard to find some of your favorite foods, prices are also going up because of inflation. 

Adding to the problem, we are also in a huge labor shortage. According to CNN Business, with all the ships stuck in port, new shipments can’t come in because the old cargo can’t get unloaded fast enough for the new ships and cargo to come in. That also means that prices will go up that come from overseas like oil and other products we use on a daily basis. 

There is little to no way to get the product out to stores. Now is a great time to become a truck driver or go work on ports or even unload trucks. These jobs will pay well because they are so limited with the number of workers they have and the demand is high for workers in those fields. 

COVID may have changed us in more ways than anyone could have foreseen. With this labor shortage, we will keep finding ourselves in the same situations over and over again.