#21 – Middle East in Flames, Amazon Breaks Records, and Matcha in Crisis

✈️ Middle East on Fire: Maersk and Qatar Airways Suspend Services

The conflict in the Middle East is paralyzing global supply chains on multiple fronts. Maersk confirmed the suspension of operations at the Port of Haifa in Israel, while Hapag-Lloyd reduced services citing concerns for crew safety and reliability.

Doha Airport closed for 8 hours: Qatar Airways temporarily suspended flights after Qatar’s airspace was shut down following an attempted Iranian missile strike on a U.S. military base. Hamad International Airport in Doha—the Gulf’s second busiest after Dubai—was closed for eight hours, stranding tens of thousands of passengers and forcing massive flight rerouting across the region.

The situation highlights the vulnerability of global supply chains to geopolitical instability. The Middle East remains a crucial transit point for both passenger traffic and freight, with the Gulf serving as a hub for key east-west trade routes.

Companies reliant on fast, predictable flows of goods—from energy and automotive producers to retail and consumer goods firms—are closely monitoring the situation. Prolonged disruptions could mean rising costs, rerouting challenges, and extended delays, especially for time-sensitive shipments.

🔗 Source:Supply Chain Digital

🍵 Japan Can’t Produce Enough Matcha: When Climate Upends a Millennia-Old Supply Chain

Matcha, the green tea powder symbolic of Japan, is facing an unprecedented supply crisis. The numbers are striking: at a Kyoto auction in May, tencha (the dried leaves used to make matcha) sold for 8,235 yen per kg ($55.45), a 170% increase from last year and far above the previous record of 4,862 yen in 2016.

The causes are multiple but converging: global demand for matcha has exploded thanks to social media (TikTok in particular) and the search for healthy coffee alternatives. At the same time, Japan recorded record temperatures in the summer of 2024, with the Kyoto region—responsible for about 25% of national tencha output—hit by severe heatwaves that damaged the April–May 2025 harvests.

Masahiro Yoshida, a sixth-generation grower, harvested only 1.5 tons of tencha this year, down 25% from his typical two-ton crop. “Last summer was so hot it damaged the bushes, so we couldn’t pick as many tea leaves,” he explained.

The paradox of the matcha supply chain: despite national tencha production increasing 2.7 times over ten years (5,336 tons in 2024), global demand grew tenfold just in the past year, according to some importers. Newly planted fields need five years before they can be harvested, making a short-term solution impossible.

Lesson for procurement? Even the most traditional, established supply chains can be upended by the combination of climate change, social demand, and digital virality.

🔗 Sources: Supply Chain Digital, Star Adverstiser

🚀 Amazon and Prime Day 2025: Risk Management Lessons on a Planetary Scale

Amazon’s Prime Day 2025 (July 8–11) stretched to four days and broke all previous records, but behind the success lies a risk management machine every procurement manager should study. With over 300 million items sold versus the usual 1.6 million packages shipped on a normal day, Amazon had to handle a 10x surge in volume.

Preparation begins months ahead: Amazon holds planning meetings and training sessions with staff months before the event. Teams must ensure fulfillment centers and delivery stations are fully staffed and that enough drivers are available to quickly deliver packages. New hires are onboarded months in advance to receive proper training.

The “playbook” as an anti-fragile strategy: Amazon drafts an operations manual that “describes every single part of our operation from start to finish.” The company conducts regular refresher training and simulations to strategize responses to potential scenarios such as equipment failures or transport delays.

This year, challenges multiplied: reciprocal 10% tariffs introduced in February 2025 on Chinese products, combined with existing Section 301 duties, pushed total tariffs above 30% on many items. Sellers scrambled to import goods during the temporary tariff-reduction window (which ended August 11) to avoid higher costs.

Lesson for procurement? Systematic preparation + team training + scenario simulations = resilient supply chain. As Amazon puts it: “Regular meetings between delivery station managers ahead of major events ensure problems are addressed proactively, fostering a culture of transparency and collaborative planning.”

🔗 Sources: Supply Chain Digital, Procurement Mag, True Commerce

🤫 USA: ESG Investments at a High, Communication at a Low. The New Phenomenon of “Greenhushing”

While Europe wrestles with stricter regulations and calls for simplification, the U.S. is developing a paradoxical ESG strategy: investing more but communicating less. That’s the takeaway from the EcoVadis 2025 report, which surveyed 400 executives at American companies with revenues above $1 billion.

The numbers are surprising: 87% of companies maintained or increased sustainability investments in 2025, despite regulatory uncertainty under the Trump administration. But the real revolution is in communication: 31% of executives are investing more while reducing public messaging, and 8% have completely stopped talking about ESG commitments publicly while continuing to invest.

“Greenhushing” becomes strategy: nearly half of respondents (48%) kept their sustainability strategy unchanged but discussed it less publicly. Why? 65% of executives view supply chain sustainability as a real competitive advantage contributing to growth through risk reduction, greater resilience, and cost savings.

Procurement at the center of the silent strategy: 57% of companies use risk-mapping tools, 49% employ ESG platforms for supplier engagement, and 89% plan further tech investments in the next 12 months. Compliance is seen as an opportunity, not a cost.

Lesson for European procurement managers? While the EU pushes for regulatory transparency, the U.S. shows sustainability can be effective without public proclamations, focusing instead on execution and tangible supply chain results.

🔗 Source:Il sole 24 ore