Sweet treat giant Hershey warned investors Thursday that it won't be able to fully meet Halloween and holiday demand for its products.
In a call discussing its second-quarter earnings, Hershey CEO Michele Buck said the candy-maker uses the same equipment to make both everyday and seasonal confections.
As a result, it must balance the production of both. And due to overwhelming demand and supply-chain issues related to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it is erring on the side of ensuring its everyday items remain in stock.
"We will not be able to fully meet consumer demand due to capacity constraints," Buck said.
She said the company sources much of its equipment and supplies from Europe, which has been facing an economic crunch due to the reduction in Russian natural gas supplies.
The consequence: This year's seasonal product selection will come up short.
"We had a strategy of prioritizing everyday on-shelf availability," Buck said. "It was a tough decision to balance that with the seasons, but we thought that was really important. And so that was a choice that we needed to make. We had opportunity to deliver more Halloween [candy], but we weren’t able to supply that."
The 128-year-old, Pennsylvania-based Hershey Co. is the parent company of Reese's, Kit-Kat, Jolly Rancher and Twizzlers, among others.
NBC News reached out to rival candy-maker Mars, which is privately held, to see if it is experiencing similar capacity issues, but did not immediately receive a response.
