To be fair, large grocery store chains were beginning preparations as far back as December 2019, which gave them time to cut out less-essential SKUs and increase production for more essential products. Big businesses with contacts in China had plenty of heads up before the disease went global.

Depending on the radioactive exposure caused by a nuclear war, the impact on the supply chain could theoretically be much more catastrophic than a pandemic. If major water supplies or agricultural infrastructure were tainted, for example, the results would be devastating.