April 29 is deemed National Supply Chain Day, recognizing the importance of the global supply chain in people's lives.
Introduced in 2020, the day aims to raise awareness about how individuals can be better partners and benefactors of the global supply chain management system.
Here are five things to know about the state of the global supply chain in 2024:
1. The American Medical Association has called the global medical supply chain flawed, citing "ongoing failures to cultivate public health capacity, nourish sustainable production processes and carefully maintain systemic supply chain resiliency." The group has called on all stakeholders to fix the issue.
2. According to a new stability index, turbulence from global supply chain disruptions is weakening, but a full return to "prepandemic normalcy remains unlikely in 2024."
3. The FDA has placed a warning on plastic syringes being shipped from China amid quality and safety concerns.
4. U.S. supply chain leaders often underestimate the risk of labor-related issues, both domestically and with foreign suppliers, according to Kevin Kolben, a supply chain labor expert and professor of business law at Newark, N.J.-based Rutgers Business School.
5. Several geopolitical factors have continued to affect the global supply chain throughout 2023 and 2024, including low water levels in the Panama Canal and cargo ship attacks by an Iran-backed rebel group.