This provides a condensed update on the current COVID-19 situation, state of the carrageenan market, and supply chain conditions as of March 31, 2021.

CARRAGEENAN MARKET

• COVID-19 has accelerated trends toward food and beverage that promote the immune system and the dairy industry is capitalizing on this trend through functional ingredients like carrageenan.
• Innova Market Insights reports that 54% of global consumers say that, due to COVID-19, they have spent time educating themselves on ingredients and procedures that can boost their immune system.
• Also, the number of patents for immunity-improving food and drinks continues to increase by the day. Recent patent filings also focus on specialized nutrition or supplements to improve immune function among the elderly and individuals suffering from chronic diseases according to London-based market research firm Mintel.

OPERATIONS

• The Philippine government placed the National Capital Region and its nearby provinces under lockdown for a week from March 29 to April 4, to stem the nation’s worst surge that’s overwhelming hospitals in its key economic area.
• Our operations have not been affected and we remain committed to providing the ingredients needed to make essential food supply in these trying times.
• We continue taking the necessary precautions to ensure a safe working environment for our employees and to timely fulfill our commitments to our customers.
• In observance of Holy Week, our offices and facilities will be closed and will have preventive maintenance from April 1 to 4. Regular business operations will resume on Monday, April 5, 2021.

INVENTORY

• More than ever, we see the importance of uninterrupted supply chains and we continue to ensure sufficient inventory in our productions.
• Monitoring of raw material and other supplies are always in place to identify possible shortage risk.

LOGISTICS

• 2021 YTD carrier schedule reliability remains at historically low levels; currently, fewer than 20% of vessels are arriving on time to the US according to Shapiro’s latest Supply Chain News.
• In March, approximately 200,000 TEU of capacity were ‘operationally’ blanked; this represents over 18% of Asia-US capacity.
• Although the cost per FEU continues to be truly eye-popping, the average cost of a premium container from Asia to the US East Coast (USEC) has been stable since mid-January.
• Traffic has resumed in Egypt’s Suez Canal after a stranded container ship blocking it for nearly a week was finally freed by salvage crews. Egyptian officials say the backlog of ships waiting to transit through should be cleared in around three days, but experts believe the knock-on effect on global shipping could take weeks or even months to resolve.

PHILIPPINE ECONOMY

• The Philippines is unlikely to hit its growth target this year because of the recent surge in COVID-19 cases and the strict quarantine restrictions imposed to curb this, Fitch Solutions said on March 29, 2021.
• Fitch initially forecast that the Philippine economy would grow 7.6% this year, and 6.8% next year. But Michael Langham, senior country risk analyst at Fitch Solutions, said this was “definitely looking less likely now.”
• A delayed economic rebound due to recent tighter restrictions to curb a surge in COVID-19 infections is a “credit negative” risk to the Philippines’ investment-grade rating, debt watcher Moody’s Investors Service said also.

MISCELLANEOUS

• With vaccines providing some light at the end of the long, dark COVID-19 tunnel, the global economy is now expected to grow by 4% in 2021, according to the latest predictions from the World Bank.
• As the global economic industry tentatively looks to a post-pandemic future, governments around the world will need to shift their thinking from ‘survival mode’ to focusing on future economic growth. According to PwC, there will be a renewed global shift towards embracing green infrastructure and fighting climate change in 2021, with the US, EU, and China all set to prioritize green strategy over the next year.