US States Experience Temporary Supply Shortage of Dunkin' Doughnuts

Dunkin' dropped the "Donuts" from its brand name years ago. Now, at least across Nebraska, New Mexico, and some other states, it doesn't have doughnuts on the shelves either.

Dunkin' stores in Omaha, Lincoln, and Grand Island in Nebraska all had no doughnuts in their cases Thursday and Friday and put up signs on their doors and drive-thru kiosks informing customers that the pastries were unavailable "due to a manufacturing error." Some locations did offer "Munchkins," or doughnut holes, on Friday.

"What? No doughnuts!" exclaimed Tyler Raikar of Omaha when told a location had none. "That's tragic!" She was more interested in the coffee, but still, she was a little disappointed that she couldn't get a doughnut. "Hopefully they have them soon," she said.

Throughout Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the surrounding suburbs, store after store confirmed there's a doughnut drought. Some employees chalked it up to a supply chain issue and others said simply that delivery trucks had been arriving without the cargo that the chain is most famous for. Employees said they hoped stocks would be replenished by next week.

A manager at the west Omaha Dunkin' location said Friday that she could not give more information on the cause of the shortage, citing orders from Dunkin's corporate headquarters. The manager said the shortage was a national problem.

However, checks of locations in other regions found no shortage of the sweet treats, including St. Joseph, Missouri, and Boston, where Dunkin' has a near cult-like following.

Jack D'Amato, a spokesperson for Inspire Brands, said there was an issue with doughnuts from a single supplier that impacted stores in Nebraska and some other states. About 4% of Dunkin's U.S. stores were impacted. The company is still looking into what the issue was and exactly how many stores were affected.

"We have already begun restocking some affected stores," D'Amato said.