A US trucker shortage is forcing restaurants to buy local farm produce, according to Freight Transportation Research Associates (FTR), of Bloomington, Indiana.
While local ingredients are trendy among Millennials, surging shipping costs are prompting sandwich and salad shops to join the trendy to deliver everything from apples to zucchini, says the FTR study.
US shipping rates jumped 14 per cent in the year ending June 30, sending truck use to nearly 100 per cent capacity, and to avoid passing on costs to customers, roadside diners are sourcing closer to home.
'We've been trying to figure out how do you get more stuff locally,' Chopt Creative Salad CEO Nick Marsh told Bloomberg.
In June, members of the National Restaurant Association supported de-regulation to get younger drivers on the road to alleviate the crunch.
While most US states allow 18-year-olds to get a commercial driver's licence, they're not allowed on the interstate under federal law until they're 21.
'Congress should support this effort to help fill desperately needed jobs. Companies are being forced to increase prices to account for higher transportation costs. This will ultimately result in higher prices for consumers,' said the sector's letter to Congress.
Said International Foodservice Distributors Association vice president Jon Eisen: 'It's harder to find drivers that are willing to spend three or four days on the road. That sector has been harder hit than local drivers - drivers that will deliver and then go home at night.'
Sandwich chain Primo Hoagies CEO Rocco Fiorentino said: 'Everything coming from across country is certainly going to go up. We'll probably start to outsource regionally and locally before it gets too bad.'
Said Good Times Restaurants CEO Boyd Hoback: 'We have yet to be out of product on anything, but we've come close. It's a significant issue for our distributors. They have to find a solution to be able to deliver product. The only solution near-term is paying people more to get more supply.'
While local ingredients are trendy among Millennials, surging shipping costs are prompting sandwich and salad shops to join the trendy to deliver everything from apples to zucchini, says the FTR study.
US shipping rates jumped 14 per cent in the year ending June 30, sending truck use to nearly 100 per cent capacity, and to avoid passing on costs to customers, roadside diners are sourcing closer to home.
'We've been trying to figure out how do you get more stuff locally,' Chopt Creative Salad CEO Nick Marsh told Bloomberg.
In June, members of the National Restaurant Association supported de-regulation to get younger drivers on the road to alleviate the crunch.
While most US states allow 18-year-olds to get a commercial driver's licence, they're not allowed on the interstate under federal law until they're 21.
'Congress should support this effort to help fill desperately needed jobs. Companies are being forced to increase prices to account for higher transportation costs. This will ultimately result in higher prices for consumers,' said the sector's letter to Congress.
Said International Foodservice Distributors Association vice president Jon Eisen: 'It's harder to find drivers that are willing to spend three or four days on the road. That sector has been harder hit than local drivers - drivers that will deliver and then go home at night.'
Sandwich chain Primo Hoagies CEO Rocco Fiorentino said: 'Everything coming from across country is certainly going to go up. We'll probably start to outsource regionally and locally before it gets too bad.'
Said Good Times Restaurants CEO Boyd Hoback: 'We have yet to be out of product on anything, but we've come close. It's a significant issue for our distributors. They have to find a solution to be able to deliver product. The only solution near-term is paying people more to get more supply.'