Costco is running out of cheese

The company says shipping bottlenecks are delaying the import of “seafood, imported cheeses, and oils”

Imported cheeses are in short supply at Costco stores (Reuters)

Shoppers looking for their favorite imported cheese at Costco may have to settle for a less fancy alternative for a while. But don’t blame the cows or farmers – the shortage is due to a lack of shipping containers, the company says.

“Overseas freight has continued to be an issue in regards to container shortage and port delays,” Richard Galanti, Costco’s chief financial officer, said during a call with investors. Mr Galanti said the shortage is causing delays on “some food and sundries items like seafood, imported cheeses, and oils.”

Other affected products include furniture, sporting goods, and lawn and garden supplies, Mr Galanti said – and not just at Costco.

“We expect these pressures to ease in the coming months, but it’s impacting everyone,” the CFO told investors.

In addition to the shortage of containers, chain stores like Costco are also contending with severe congestion at West Coast ports in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland and Seattle.

“The supply chain has been maxed out,” Jon Gold, a vice president at the National Retail Federation, told CNN Business. “Containers have been sitting at the port longer than they typically do.”

Supply chains have been under immense pressure since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, which has led to surging demand for some products – the panic buying of toilet paper being one early example – and plummeting demand for others, like clothes sold at retail stores.

But despite all these challenges, Costco has still been turning a healthy profit. Earlier this month, the Costco Wholesale Corporation reported its net sales were up by 14.7 per cent in the second quarter. The company runs 804 warehouse stores all over the world.

Meanwhile, Costco’s shipping problems are shared by all companies trying to import goods from overseas.

“Importing product from Asia, getting it through Long Beach and other ports, and getting it shipped to customers is really challenging right now,” Andrew Rees, CEO of Crocs, said on a conference call in February. “I think that will smooth out over time, but it’s going to take a little while.”