The Consumer Brands Association has announced its support of the newly created, bipartisan Congressional Supply Chain Caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives. The launch of the caucus coincides with the coronavirus outbreak which is disrupting global supply chains and threatening access to the products upon which consumers depend. The consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry supports 1.2 million infrastructure jobs and accounts for one-fifth of total freight in the United States. 

“American consumers have billions of interactions with consumer packaged goods each day. Ensuring access and affordability of these products is a complex task, made more challenging by the emergence of coronavirus,” said Geoff Freeman, president and CEO, Consumer Brands Association. “Our industry is grateful for the bipartisan leadership of the co-chairs in recognizing the critical role supply chains play and the importance of streamlining them for the benefit of consumers.”

Reps. Colin Allred (D-Texas), Angie Craig (D-Minn.), Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) and David Rouzer (R-N.C.), will serve as co-chairs of the caucus and are actively recruiting members to join them as they work to “strengthen and add resiliency to protect the delivery system, which can be severely harmed by geopolitical events such as the recent coronavirus outbreak that has had significant impacts on global supply chains,” as stated in a letter to their congressional colleagues.

“The creation of the House Supply Chain Caucus underscores the need to accelerate policy solutions and technological innovations that deliver for American consumers,” said Tom Madrecki, vice president, supply chain, Consumer Brands Association. “The caucus’ comprehensive approach to identifying policy priorities intended to achieve frictionless supply chains will help Congress create smart, bipartisan solutions that allow Americans better access to affordable, safe products when and where they need them.”

According to the co-chairs, the caucus will collaborate to elevate supply chain issues for their constituents now and in the years to come. Many of these issues are interconnected, requiring greater coordination on Capitol Hill and innovative thinking to deliver the maximum benefit to the consumer. The Consumer Brands Association will work with the caucus as an additional and important venue to further engage lawmakers on ways to achieve the world’s most innovative and efficient supply chains.

“We appreciate the co-chairs’ leadership in tackling an issue of such massive scale and impact with the end goal of smart policy solutions that build sustainable, transparent and efficient supply chains,” said Madrecki.