Altar bread industry in crisis
Pandemic spiritual communion leaves altar bread industry in crisis
Of the many ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the Catholic Church, one has gone largely unnoticed.
As the pandemic picked up steam in March 2020, millions of Catholics began to “attend” Mass via the internet or television. Instead of receiving Communion in person, they might make what is called a “spiritual communion” instead — a prayer asking Jesus to come into their souls.
Thus, churches were largely empty for months, leading to a drastic drop in the use of Communion wafers. Parishes were left with bags of unused hosts, so there was no need to receive further shipments for the time being.