Earlier quoted context omitted.
It had never occurred to me that, during a shortage, the most expensive products would sell out last. It makes sense now I've seen it happen, but I've always associated food shortages with austerity - instead I'm suddenly buying premium organic free range duck eggs.
This is because this is not an actual shortage. This is people panic-buying things they don't really need, and then of course they can't justify spending that much...
No. This is not panic-buying or hoarding. There are actual supply chain disruptions, shifting demands, fewer workers going to work, and things just aren't keeping up with major disruptions to economic structures based on low margins, having just enough capacity, and doing everything just-in-time.
They're addressable, but we're not addressing them. Instead everyone tells themselves pretty stories about how the problems aren't real, and everyone else seems to believe it.
As far as I can tell, no one actually keeps an eye on these things either. We have no idea if we will have too much or not enough food in 6 months, and my guess is not enough (B2C producers aren't scaling up due to pretty stories, while B2B ones are shutting down due to lack-of-demand).