Thursday, September 15, 2005
Grinding to a Halt
More trouble from Hurricane Katrina. As reported earlier that impact to the coffee distribution facilities in New Orleans is starting to show its effect.
Hurricane Katrina's ill winds blew nobody any good and it's likely to rain on your grocery bill, particularly if you enjoy coffee, tropical fruit and seafood.
As of last week, Chicago's two biggest grocery chains weren't admitting that the storm would make a difference to customers. "We don't see shortages at this moment," snapped Juanita Kocanda, spokeswoman for Jewel-Osco. Higher prices? "We don't see that either," she said. "I can't speculate."
"At this point we've not changed anything," said Wynona Redmond of Dominick's. "It's too early to tell what the impact will be. We receive our supplies from many sources.
Sara Lee processes about 10 percent of its coffee in a plant in Hanrahan, La., just outside New Orleans. "It's under water," Economos said. "That's where all our specialty coffee comes from. Fortunately, that's not the bulk of what we do. Competitor Proctor & Gamble, however, produces more than half the output for Folgers brand coffee in Louisiana."
Hurricane Katrina's ill winds blew nobody any good and it's likely to rain on your grocery bill, particularly if you enjoy coffee, tropical fruit and seafood.
As of last week, Chicago's two biggest grocery chains weren't admitting that the storm would make a difference to customers. "We don't see shortages at this moment," snapped Juanita Kocanda, spokeswoman for Jewel-Osco. Higher prices? "We don't see that either," she said. "I can't speculate."
"At this point we've not changed anything," said Wynona Redmond of Dominick's. "It's too early to tell what the impact will be. We receive our supplies from many sources.
Sara Lee processes about 10 percent of its coffee in a plant in Hanrahan, La., just outside New Orleans. "It's under water," Economos said. "That's where all our specialty coffee comes from. Fortunately, that's not the bulk of what we do. Competitor Proctor & Gamble, however, produces more than half the output for Folgers brand coffee in Louisiana."
