Coronavirus puts pressure on rice supply

A small crop paired with the coronavirus pandemic is severely impacting SunRice’s ability to maintain supply of Australian rice.

Rice shortages: SunRice is experiencing significant increases in demand for products.

AUSTRALIA’S  major rice company is struggling to meet demand as the coronavirus pandemic exacerbates shortage of supply.

“SunRice has experienced significant increase in demand for products, which has affected availability of stock in Australian retailers,” SunRice chief executive Rob Gordon said.

He said the dem­and spike exacerbated shortage of supply of Australian rice products which the company had already been experiencing due to ongoing drought conditions in the Riverina.

“The 2019 Riverina rice crop was the second-lowest on record at 54,000 tonnes,” he said. In 2018, Australia’s rice crop was 623,000 tonnes.

“The current Australian crop due for harvest in coming months will be smaller again,” Mr Gordon said.

“This situation is severely impacting our ability to maintain supply of Australian rice in response to the increased demand due to coronavirus.”

The company was now sourcing high-quality rice from international sources, Mr Gordon said, to temporarily supplement supply to the Australian market.