The bougie foods causing international shortages

"The meteoric rise of Dubai chocolate has triggered a global pistachio supply crunch," said the Financial Times.

The luxury chocolate stuffed with pistachio cream was a "modest hit" when Emirati chocolatier FIX launched it in 2021. But a video posted on TikTok in December 2023 – now viewed more than 120 million times – turned it into a "global sensation".

The "worldwide craze" has predictably led to a "worldwide shortage", sending the price of pistachio kernels soaring from $7.65 a pound a year ago to about $10.30, said Giles Hacking of nut trader CG Hacking. "The pistachio world is basically tapped out at the moment."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

'Affordable luxury'

Pistachios have "long polarised the world's taste buds", said The Guardian. In 2008, the US surpassed Iran (where the nut is native) to become the world's top exporter.

Pistachio trees are "drought-resistant"; their deep roots can withstand a limited water supply. As the climate crisis intensifies, investment in crops that don't need much water, particularly in drought-plagued California, caused pistachios to "flood the market, turning the luxury nut into an accessible flavour for everything from coffee syrups to shower gel". In 2023, pistachios were named "nut of the year".

Pistachios have since "shifted from a niche ingredient to a mainstream one", said The Times. "It's an affordable luxury," said Lizzie Haywood, innovations manager for Waitrose (which was forced to limit sales of Lindt's version of Dubai chocolate to two bars per person after multiple sell-outs). But – crucially for social media – the ingredient elevates a dish visually. "It's colourful. That green colour – people like that."

The viral trend is having an impact on the agricultural sectors of both Iran and the US. The pistachio market was "already struggling" due to last year's "disappointing harvest" in the US, said the Daily Mail. California's pistachio supply fell by up to 20% in the 12 months to February. In the six months to March, Iran exported 40% more pistachios to the UAE than in the whole year prior, according to its customs office. Now, there is a "global shortage".

'This is why we can't have nice things'

Pistachios aren't the only example that "epitomises the notion of 'this is why we can’t have nice things'", said The Independent.

"Sticking with the green theme", in 2015 avocados became "the go-to brunch item", leading to soaring demand in Europe and the US, and a shortage that prompted a "crime wave of mass thefts".

Another "bougie consumable" is matcha, powdered green tea used in traditional Japanese tea ceremonies. "Spurred on" by social media posts "championing matcha-infused everything", production "nearly tripled to meet demand" between 2010 and 2023. Its "fashionable status" caused a global shortage and surging prices. The small Japanese town of Uji, which specialises in matcha production, was "ill-equipped for this sudden Western clamouring". It's come under "massive strain".

Avocados are also "increasingly controversial" due to the strain they put on the planet, said environmental researcher Thomas Davies on The Conversation. Most plantations "rely heavily on fertiliser and fossil fuels", and due to their small crop yield, avocados also have a "higher carbon footprint per kilogram": more than twice that of bananas. The trees are "very thirsty" and they are grown in "already water-stressed" regions like Mexico. New plantations are also "driving deforestation", and have been linked to "organised crime and human rights abuses".

"In the face of such evidence, it's hard to argue that our bougie taste in snacks isn't destroying the planet," said The Independent. Demand dictates supply, but supply chains "simply aren't set up" for viral videos or "the overnight stardom that comes courtesy of an algorithmic quirk".

"However good the latest food and drink craze looks on your feed, it’s masking the ugly truth beneath: virality and sustainability simply aren't compatible."