Boba shortage? Reported scarcity seemingly not affecting Houston yet

It’s been about three weeks after an Instagram post from Boba Guys became a story in the San Francisco Chronicle and then created nationwide concern for bubble tea fans everywhere: is a possible boba shortage on the horizon? Will this affect Houston?

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The issues regarding shipping and receiving cargo are very much real, but thus far, at least in phone calls to multiple bubble tea establishments, the Houston area remains relatively unaffected.

In all, KPRC 2 called bubble tea establishments such as Tiger Sugar, Feng Cha, Gong Cha (Bellaire), Mr. Wish, Kung Fu Tea (Bellaire), Tea Top (Bellaire), Sharetea (Sugar Land), and Tapioca House. All those answering the phone said things are still business as usual thus far, that their boba supplies have not changed.

Are they all aware of the possible issues? Yes. And for those that are not huge franchises, there are now limitations in how much boba they can order from their vendors.

Former Heavenly Beverages owner Pablo Ng says the shipping logjam can be traced in part as a domino effect of the pandemic.

“A lot of it is affected mainly from short staff in CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Patrol) and FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Adminstration) personnel,” Ng said. “(COVID-19) is one of the causes.”

Ng also said he knows other owners in the industry who are definitely paying more attention to stocking up on their boba to ensure that their supplies last, whether a boba shortage hits Houston or not.

However, the main point is that currently, as of now, there is no boba apocalypse in Houston, according to the above shops, which should come as a relief to the bubble-tea faithful in the Houston area.


About the Author:

Born in Canada but raised in Houston, Howard joined KPRC 2 in 2021 after five years at ESPN. Before that, Howard was a reporter on Houston Rockets and Houston Astros game broadcasts. Among the events that Howard has covered on site: the NBA bubble and the Basketball Hall of Fame inductions for both Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady. He's H-town proud!