Do you ever wonder how your favorite foods make it to your local grocery store? Who is responsible for ensuring the safe, secure, and on-time delivery of our produce? How do stores make sure there’s enough food stocked on their shelves?

In the simplest terms, a supply chain is a process that ensures a product or service is available to a consumer. Supply chains involve many steps from inception to distribution to sale, and are often vulnerable to disruptions such as natural disasters and major events like the COVID-19 pandemic.

To better understand the skills and background required to work in this field, we chose to highlight a simple fresh produce item—asparagus. We spoke with key workers from every step along the way, including a farmer, a packing/shipping manager, a wholesaler, a grocer, and a retail analytics consultant.

Are you passionate about a particular product or service? Have a knack for logistics or technology? Can you problem-solve or work under strict deadlines?

Supply Chain: Life Cycle of Asparagus could open your mind to new career paths. And we bet your next trip to the grocery store (or job search) won’t be the same!