Covid-19 Updates
Our response to the Covid-19 Pandemic
The events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic continue to evolve rapidly. Bergamot’s dedication to THE safety, and well-being of the communities remain strong.
The global war on covid-19
(Source : World Health Organization)
PPE supply crunch during the covid-19 pandemic
The pandemic has put immense pressure on the global personal protective equipment (PPE) supply chain. Demand for specific PPE products, which includes disposable single-use gloves has grown exponentially in lockstep with spikes in covid-19 cases. The skyrocketing demand and continuous pressure on PPE manufacturers working at absolute capacity has led to quality, social, economic and environmental issues.
4 Major Factors driving Glove Price Increases
There has been a 45% increase in global demand for nitrile disposable gloves since the start of COVID-19. Put into figures, the supply and demand deficit equates to a shortfall of 214 billion disposable gloves – demand has exploded while the supply is only growing incrementally.
Allied Market Research estimates that the global disposable gloves market amounted to $6.8 billion in 2019, and is expected to nearly triple to $18.8 billion by 2027.
This is leading to glove manufacturers posting record profits, attributed to the increased production, a higher volume of gloves sold and significantly higher average selling prices compared with 2019. Net profits as high as a sevenfold increase are now being reported.
The worldwide shortage of nitrile gloves is predicted to continue for more than a year into the first half of 2022 due to a lack of raw materials.
Factories that supply the raw materials are adding new capacity based on the previous year’s demand – insufficient for current demand levels. Building new factories to handle the current demand of nitrile rubber can take upwards of 18 months to be operational.
The shortage of raw material for our nitrile gloves and the disruption to the supply or production of other material such as packaging materials due to the global lockdown, has caused an increase in the production cost.
Social media is awash with third-party dealers offering gloves at exorbitant prices to those desperate enough to purchase from them, in order for their business to continue to operate. Some factories are offloading rejected quality stock they are unable to sell directly to hospitals and governments with little to no legal risks.
Additionally, there are investment firms financing glove deals in return for large profit share, which in turn is driving total glove cost.
The culmination of these factors are the reason nitrile glove users have seen a dramatic increase in cost throughout 2020. With prices likely to continue increasing for the foreseeable future, purchasing gloves, especially during a pandemic, does come with quality and safety issues for users, particularly in the medical and food industries.
With an influx of rejected and counterfeited gloves currently in the market claiming to be medical and food grade, always:
- Ask your supplier for quality standards of the product you are purchasing;
- Preferably review product samples; and always purchase from a reputable supplier, never a dealer.
- If the product is available in bulk, it is likely the supply chain has been compromised
At Bergamot, we are committed to ensuring the quality of our products, as confirmed by our certifications and the standards we meet. It is with this commitment that despite the pressures of the pandemic, we continue to manufacture and supply the highest quality and responsibly sourced products to protect communities.
World Health Organization (WHO) Information
From the official public health information Youtube channel of the World Health Organization (WHO)