Lovers Of Canned Cranberries Beware: Expect Thanksgiving Shortages

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A Thanksgiving meal usually consists of roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, and pumpkin pie. But we left out one crucial side that some Americans might not get to eat this year due to a can shortage, that is, jellied cranberry sauce from Ocean Spray.

Ocean Spray CEO Tom Hayes told Bloomberg Radio that consumers might have to make their own fresh cranberry sauce due to a can shortage and snarled supply chains that will leave some supermarket shelves that usually stock Ocean Spray items bare.

He said consumers who prefer "iconic cranberry jellied sauce in a can" may not get what they want. People may have to "make cranberry sauce from fresh berries," Hayes said.

Hayes suggested that consumers should "plan early and make sure you get to the grocery store. It will be a happy Thanksgiving, but you have to demonstrate more flexibility than you have in the past."

Labor shortages, rising freight costs, upward pressure on wages, and port congestion add to the overall Thanksgiving dinner costs, up some 14% from a year ago amid soaring food inflation that shows no signs of abating.

It's not just cranberries: turkey supplies in cold storage are at their lowest point in years ahead of Thursday's holiday. This means Thanksgiving will be the most expensive ever.