From the end of 2020, the worldwide markets have faced a shortage of cardboard, and the issue has been continuing. The imbalance of demand and supply for cardboard resulted in price adjustment for 15% to 20% higher.

What is Causing The Cardboard Shortages?

One of the most important reasons is a coronavirus. In 2020, Covid-19 out broke and was widely spread around the world. The cases of the coronavirus spiked, so governments announced national lockdowns including the US and European countries. The lockdown measures led to the lack of fellers and laborers working for waste paper recycling, especially in South America. Thus, the raw material of cardboard declined considerably.

The raw material was in shortage, and to add insult to injury, the world also faced the difficulty of container shortage. The transit time for raw material has been extended. Thus, cardboard manufacturers had difficulties with sufficient raw materials.

How Does The Cardboard Shortage 2021 Affect Cartridge Web?

Cartridge Web is a manufacturer of compatible toner cartridges for laser printers; we are based in Taiwan but we have warehouses in the US and the Netherlands. Inventory is well prepared there to satisfy our customers’ demand with timely delivery. Therefore, after production completion, we ship products to overseas warehouses to restock regularly. However, due to the shortage of cardboard, the lead time for CW’s packaging and cartons is much longer than before. In the past, packaging and cartons could be supplied to us in 2 to 3 weeks. From the end of 2020, the lead time has been prolonged to 8 weeks. As a result, we have started to adjust our inventory level and the restock frequency to prevent further delay.

It is expected that the cardboard shortage will be eased in 2021 Q3 gradually. In addition, the situation will completely be solved in Q4.