Industry leader warns of global gunpowder shortage

A scarcity of global gunpowder supplies could trigger a substantial increase in ammunition prices, US company Vista Outdoor has warned, according to a Newsweek report.

The Minnesota-based firm, which owns several firearms businesses, told the magazine last week that it would go ahead with an across-the-board increase of its ammunition and gunpowder prices on January 1.

“Due to world events our suppliers have notified us of unprecedented demand for and an anticipated global shortage of gunpowder, and thus has increased our prices substantially,” Vista Outdoor’s vice president of sporting product sales, Brett Nelson, was quoted as saying in a letter. “We must therefore raise our pricing to help offset those increases.”

Vista Outdoor also told customers that unless they cancel a delivery, the firm will reprice “existing and future orders shipped on or after January 1, 2024, to the new prices.” Revised price lists will be provided in the coming weeks, according to Nelson.

The report indicated that among the companies expected to increase prices are Remington, Alliant Powder, CCI, Federal, SEVI-Shot, and Speer.

Ammunition prices spiked during the Covid pandemic amid soaring sales and disrupted supply chains.

Vista Outdoor did not specify which global events had contributed to the price increase, according to Newsweek. The magazine, however, noted that the Ukraine conflict and the hostilities between Israel and Hamas had substantially pushed up ammunition demand.

The report also highlighted that Vista Outdoor had pledged a million-round ammunition donation to Ukraine for March 2024. “Supporting the relief effort is a crucial element of the global response and we are proud to do our part,” the company said. “It underscores how critical the Second Amendment is in America and highlights the importance of the ability of American Manufacturers to supply our allies with ammunition. We have long supported Ukrainian armed forces and we will continue to do so in this global cause to unite for democracy,” it added.

According to Newsweek, NATO allies and partners agreed $2.58 billion worth of contracts in September and orders for “hundreds of thousands of pieces of key ammunition” for Ukraine. The first deliveries are reportedly scheduled to start toward the end of this year.