There is a lot going on in the world of chicken tenders. Currently, there is a rumored shortage of tenders in the United States and many speculate that it’s only going to get worse, which would be devastating to kids around the country. The question is: is this threat of a chicken tender shortage real?

With such a high demand for heavily processed chicken tenders, it puts a strain on the nation’s chicken suppliers as a whole, and the supply has already experienced some shortages due to weather and labor shortages. Many customers have recently reported that they are having trouble finding chicken tenders or are shocked by the recent rise in price of the product.

One of the world’s largest chicken suppliers, Tyson Foods, warned of an unexpected drop in chicken supply. USA Today reported that, “multiple, unprecedented market shocks, including a global pandemic and severe weather conditions, led to an unexpected and drastic drop in meat processors’ abilities to operate at full capacity.”

Part of the issue with putting more chicken tenders on the shelves is that it requires a lot more work to produce them. Tenders require more processing to package and sell than all of the other poultry products. Because of this, chicken manufacturers, in an attempt to slow demands for the product, have recently raised the price of chicken tenders. Even some restaurants are being impacted and are having a tough time getting chicken tenders in their restaurant. 

Chicken tenders have always been a universally loved food, so it’s no surprise that there is high consumer demand, only adding to the shortage. This last May, National Chicken Council Spokesman, Tom Super, said that the shortage in may was due to severe winter storms. There are a number of things that could cause this product to have short supply, but the chicken manufacturers have dealt with it before, and although it takes some time, the price will eventually go down and the supply of chicken tenders will increase.