Extreme weather is 2024’s top supply chain risk: Everstream

Kenneth January 15, 2024

Wildfires, rains and droughts could cause shipping delays, while agricultural commodities might face shortages from weather and other factors, the analytics firm said.

Extreme weather events are the top risk facing supply chains in 2024, according to an annual outlook report from Everstream Analytics.

The firm attached a risk score of 100% to the possibility of extreme weather causing supply chain disruption. That assessment follows a year where weather caused havoc for supply chains, from crop failures to storm damage to slowdowns on major shipping channels.

Among other examples, heavy rains and flooding in California, Nevada and Utah in spring of 2023 caused a 20% to 30% decrease in shipments in areas where transportation systems were disrupted, according to Everstream’s analysis.

The firm also found that smoky conditions from 2023’s prolonged wildfires in Canada delayed deliveries in Chicago and New York by up to two days, while reduced visibility caused shipments in different areas to…