Fast food restaurants and coffee shops are dealing with a disposable cup shortage. It’s just the latest issue caused by on-going supply chain issues blamed on a plastics shortage, port backlogs, and increased demand for to-go meals from restaurants. Starbucks and Wetzel’s Pretzels have reportedly been hit hard by the cup and container shortage. Another factor likely playing into the shortage is lack of manufacturing workers, as the industry lost 578,000 workers in 2020, and has only continued losing them since. A report from July 2021 revealed more than 50 percent of survey respondents say they struggled to source adequate amounts of disposable take-out packaging for their businesses.