By the New York Times’s Global Economics Correspondent, an extraordinary
journey to understand the worldwide supply chain—exposing both the
fascinating pathways of manufacturing and transportation that bring products
to your doorstep, and the ruthless business logic that has left local
communities at the mercy of a complex and fragile network for their basic
necessities.
"A tale that will change how you look at the world." —Mark Leibovich
Named a Best Book of the Year by Foreign Policy and The Aspen Institute *
Longlisted for the Porchlight Business Book Award
How does the wealthiest country on earth run out of protective gear in the middle of a
public health catastrophe? How do its parents find themselves unable to locate crucially
needed infant formula? How do its largest companies spend billions of dollars making
cars that no one can drive for a lack of chips?
The last few years have radically highlighted the intricacy and fragility of the global
supply chain. Enormous ships were stuck at sea, warehouses overflowed, and delivery
trucks stalled. The result was a scarcity of everything from breakfast cereal to medical
devices, from frivolous goods to lifesaving necessities. And while the scale of the
pandemic shock was unprecedented, it underscored the troubling reality that this
system built on Just in Time principles was fundamentally at risk of descending into
chaos all along. And it still is. Sabotaged by financial interests, a loss of transparency
in markets, and worsening working conditions for the people tasked with keeping the
gears turning, our global supply chain has become perpetually on the brink of collapse.
In How the World Ran Out of Everything, award-winning journalist Peter S. Goodman
reveals the fascinating innerworkings of our supply chain and the factors that have led
to its constant, dangerous vulnerability. His reporting takes readers deep into the
elaborate system, showcasing the triumphs and struggles of the human players who
operate it—from factories in Asia and an almond grower in Northern California, to a
group of striking railroad workers in Texas, to a truck driver who Goodman
accompanies across hundreds of miles of the Great Plains. Through their stories,
Goodman weaves a powerful argument for reforming a supply chain to become truly
reliable and resilient, demanding a radical redrawing of the bargain between labor and
shareholder interests, and deeper attention paid to how we get the things we need.
From one of the most respected voices in economic journalism working today, How the
World Ran Out of Everything is a fiercely smart, deeply informative look at how our
supply chain operates, and why its reform is crucial—not only to avoid dysfunction in
our day to day lives, but to protect the fate of our global fortunes.
This riveting work of economic journalism breaks down the complexities of modern
globalization and reveals:
The Just in Time Fallacy: Discover how a sensible manufacturing philosophy
was twisted to prioritize shareholder interests over resilience, setting the stage
for global shortages and widespread inflation.
Human Cost of Efficiency: Journey from factories in Asia to the highways of
the Great Plains and meet the human players—from truck drivers to railroad
workers—exploited to keep the gears of commerce turning.
Monopoly Power and Price Hikes: Investigate how decades of deregulation
allowed a few monopolistic companies to dominate key industries, engineering
scarcity to boost profits during a worldwide catastrophe.
The Future of the Supply Chain: Explore the urgent arguments for reforming
the system through reshoring and nearshoring to build a more reliable and
resilient network for the things we need