Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada, doesn’t want you to panic. He’s assured citizens on March 18, that his government is committed to keeping the food supply chain intact, and announced a $25 billion fund to help companies in activities towards this end.

Clearly, either everyone failed to get the memo, or more likely, nobody watches CBC.

We took a walk through a few different grocery stores in search of pasta and some alfredo sauce for our dinner last night, and witnessed panic shoppers filling up on Cadbury chocolate bunnies and baskets full of milk. The toilet paper aisle was a barren wasteland in each of the three stores we visited. My wife and I experienced a moment of sheer terror in a Walmart, as we stood in the centre aisle and watched as Campbell’s Soup hungry vultures descended on an unwitting stockboy. We thought for sure they were going to tear him to pieces in their frenzy to get at the cans of chicken noodle. He barely survived. The blue of his uniform was streaked through with white where the vultures had torn his clothing, and by the dazed expression on his face as he stumbled away, we wondered if he’d ever be the same.

The true tragedy here is that the stockboy didn’t need to suffer. There’s not going to be any hiccoughs in the way food is supplied and distributed. We talked to a lonely electronics wrangler in the DVD and video games section of the same Walmart nearly twenty minutes later, who told us that the store gets regular shipments. Even if they are gone within the first twelve minutes, because and I quote: “people are stupid as fuck.”

Now is actually a good time for supply-side food providers because applications involving the food supply chain are being fast-tracked to provide funding as soon as possible. Naturally Splendid (NSP.V) started the application process for funding from federal and provincial funding programs to purchase the needed increased levels of ingredients, and to optimize their food manufacturing facility during the crisis.

“There has been a State of Emergency declared in the province of BC with seemingly hourly announcements of additional ‘lock down’ measures. The pandemic circling the globe has put an increased demand on the food supply chain here in Canada and we’ve all seen consumers stock up on supplies. Maintaining the food supply chain is absolutely critical to ensure orderly access for all Canadians,” said J. Craig Goodwin, CEO of Naturally Splendid.

Naturally Splendid has been moving towards a business strategy focusing on manufacturing nutritious filling, plant-based bars and bites for awhile now. The efforts and capital used in establishing their food manufacturing facility has attracted client attention since being certified SQFin in Q3 of 2019. Now, Prosnacks has been approached by several new clients to secure line time at the facility in the wake of COVID-19.

“Naturally Splendid, through our Safe Quality Food, Level 2 (SQF2) Certified food manufacturing facility, is committed to increasing production to fulfill purchase orders from our contract manufacturing clients, as well as producing our own company branded product lines destined for grocery store shelves. The company has expanded its online store services, making more products available online, in response to government requests to limit individual’s movement wherever possible,” Goodwin said.

So ease up on the panic shopping. There’s enough toilet paper and Cadbury chocolate bunnies for everyone.

—Joseph Morton