Big 5.56 Ammo Supply Crunch (Maybe)

One of the first calibers to bounce back after the Great Ammo Shortage of 2020 was 62-grain M855 “Green tip” 5.56 NATO. The reason for this is that literal truckloads of it come from the U.S. Army’s Ammo Plant in Lake City, Missouri, which is sold surplus on the commercial market by Winchester, who runs the plant as a contractor.

Well, rumors dropped from Larry Keane, one of the big bosses over at NSSF, that the White House was aiming to put the crimp on the practice, a move that could make like 30 percent of the 5.56 ammo on the consumer market evaporate.

Meanwhile, both officials with the Pentagon and Lake City have denied there are any plans to halt the current practice, as have unnamed sources at the White House.

Word is Republican Congressmen from Missouri, concerned about keeping good-paying jobs at Lake City– layoffs of up to 500 workers were mentioned if the ammo ax falls– are also leaning on the White House for answers.

By Michael Crites

Michael Crites has served as executive editor of AmericanFirearms.org since 2016 and previously held positions as associate editor and range correspondent dating back to 2000. He discovered his passion for precision shooting at age 12 during his first visit to his grandfather's shooting range, eventually earning an Expert classification in three different shooting disciplines before age 18. During his studies at University of Wyoming, he earned four varsity letters on the collegiate rifle and pistol teams, serving as team captain for three consecutive years. He became the first UW student to complete the NRA Range Safety Officer certification while maintaining full-time student status. He graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Communications. His diverse career has included roles as Range Safety Coordinator for the National Rifle Championships in Camp Perry 2001; editor-in-chief, Precision Shooter Quarterly; series editor, Modern Firearms Handbook collection; managing editor, National Shooting Sports Foundation Newsletter; editor, Competitive Shooter Magazine; operations director for Western Arms & Ammunition Co.; senior editor for the Shooter's Reference Annual (Cheyenne); content director for The Firearms Report, published by the American Shooting Coalition in Billings, MT; firearms correspondent for Hunting & Shooting, produced by Outdoor Sports Media Group in Jackson, WY; and publisher for Wyoming Shooting Sports Journal in Casper. He has contributed as a regular columnist for American Rifleman (NRA Publications), technical editor for Precision, a publication of the National Bench Rest Shooters Association (Phoenix, AZ); and as firearms specialist for the Gun Owner's Annual. As a digital content creator, he has written more than 400 articles on AmericanFirearms.org, developed shooting technique coverage for the Brownells Shooting Blog (Montezuma, IA) and Federal Premium "Range Notes" platform (Anoka, MN), and served as lead content strategist for International Defensive Pistol Association (Berryville, AR). Beyond Tactical Firearms, his current endeavors include content development for the Wyoming State Rifle Association (Cheyenne, WY) and technical manual production for High Plains Publishing of Laramie, WY. He has contributed to the 12th, 13th, and 14th editions of Modern Sporting Rifles Guide and edited The Complete Guide to Tactical Shooting and Competitive Shooter's Reference Manual (Gun Digest Books).

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