Our timelines and news feeds are saturated with stories at the moment about gas prices rising, CO2 vanishing and supermarket shelves stripped bare - but how is it all connected?
Supermarkets and food firms say the gas price rise has caused a shortage of carbon dioxide which is threatening UK supplies of meat and fresh produce, as well as fizzy drinks.
CO2 is used when packaging meat, to keep it fresh and prolong its shelf life and is also used to make beer and soft drinks fizzy.
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The shortages of CO2 follow the shutting down of two large fertiliser plants in Teesside and Cheshire - which produce CO2 as a by-product - with the owners citing the increase in gas prices as the reason for the closure.
Around 60% of the UK's CO2 comes from the two plants - so with their closure comes the shortage of CO2.
Energy prices are rising at an eye-watering rate due to surging demand post Covid, low wind speeds in Europe and power station closures, as well as a fire in Kent which cut off power supplies from France.
The UK Government blames the rise on the pandemic lockdowns and a reopening of the economy.
The Food and Drink Federation chief executive Ian Wright said CO2 was essential to many production processes and warned there could be "serious consequences" for supplies within a matter of days.
The British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) says supplies of CO2 could run out in two weeks - and some poultry plants have run out already.
BMPA chief executive Nick Allen told The Mirror that up to 90% of chicken and pig slaughterhouses have to stop work without CO2.
This would mean shortages of meat within days, he added.
