A Message from Our CEO

To our customers,

As we close out the 2024 calendar year, we reflect on a period marked by both new challenges and rewarding opportunities. This year, we successfully added 31 new items to our portfolio, including clean-label Asian pantry staples, specialty Latin American ingredients, and an expanded variety of global peppers. Our dedication to industry-leading innovation remains steadfast, and we look forward to introducing even more exciting additions in 2025.

On the logistics front, 2024 proved to be another high-volume and high-volatility year for imports. Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, inadequate rainfall in the Panama Canal, and pending import tariff expectations led to increased ocean transit times and higher shipping costs. East and Gulf Coast longshoremen executed a 3-day strike, their first in nearly 50 years. In spite of these issues, it was a significant year for imports, projected to rank as the third-highest year to date, helped by a resilient US economy and consumer spending.

2024 also proved volatile for agriculture and crop yields. Increasingly extreme climate conditions and weather events continue to cause more drastic swings in food pricing. Our suppliers and growers continue to focus on increasing their resiliency to crop yield volatility.

Looking ahead to 2025, we see continued uncertainty on the horizon. We are actively monitoring the preliminary plans of the incoming presidential administration to adjust import tariffs, potentially increasing duties on goods from China, Mexico, Canada and elsewhere. We expect climate and geopolitical issues to persist, and we will continue to work with our product suppliers and logistics providers to mitigate the impacts on our business. Our goal, as always, is to continue delivering for our customers, and we remain committed to increasing the resiliency of our supply chain to do that.

As we close out 2024 and approach 2025, we extend our gratitude for your business and trust in us. We look forward to helping you close out the year on a high note and wish you a joyful holiday season.

To stay abreast of the most up-to-date and in-depth details regarding the supply chain, freight, and crop updates, please read our Regional Market Updates provided below.

Keith Dougherty

CEO of Roland Foods