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An industry official has warned the days consumers could pick up everything they want from supermarket shelves are over.
Ian Wright, chief executive of the Food and Drink Federation has said a shortage in lorry drivers and around half a million people missing in the farm to fork supply chain is to blame.
Many of the lorry drivers are moving to online retailers like Amazon or Tesco due to the better hours and more pay.
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Also, a lot of workers are EU nationals who have been forced to leave the UK due to the pandemic and Brexit.
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He said: "It's going to get worse, and it's not going to get better after getting worse any time soon.
"The result of the labour shortages is that the just-in-time system that has sustained supermarkets, convenience stores and restaurants - so the food has arrived on shelf or in the kitchen, just when you need it - is no longer working.
"And I don't think it will work again, I think we will see we are now in for permanent shortages. Now these shortages don't mean that you're going to run out of food."
Last week most of the east of England ran out of bottled water and suppliers will make decisions to prioritise products which give them higher margins believes the chief executive.
Mr Wright said: "That's a first world problem. Nobody's going to be completely bereft if they can't get bottled water.
"But what is changing now is that the UK shopper and consumer could have previously have expected just about every product they want to be on a shelf or in the restaurant all the time.
"That's over, and I don't think it's coming back."
BobCobbSalad5 on September 10th, 2021 at 18:35 UTC »
Happens everywhere. They complain that "nobody wants to work" or that "there's a labor shortage." It's really there's a "wage shortage."
skillmagillagain on September 10th, 2021 at 18:18 UTC »
I wish they would call them choice limitations not food shortages. There is loads of food but the choices have become fewer. You want a specific loaf of bread, "sorry we are currently only stocking 19 varieties instead of 26".
neuparpol on September 10th, 2021 at 15:23 UTC »
"Many of the lorry drivers are moving to online retailers like Amazon or Tesco due to the better hours and more pay."
Now, I feel like there is some kind of solution to this, but I can't quite put my finger on it... gift cards? no...