Dealer Index located on Page A10
February 2022
Volume 39
48 Pages
P.O. Box 306, Colfax, WA 99111
Phone: (509) 397-2191 Number 11
SHIPPING SOLUTIONS Vilsack: Port initiative is important first step
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By CAROL RYAN DUMAS Capital Press he new “pop-up” staging area at the Port of Oakland, Calif., is only the beginning of federal efforts to expedite container exports, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack says. Disruptions at West Coast ports have led to significant charges and high fees to U.S. agricultural exporters by ocean carriers. Perhaps the most painful change was the empty containers leaving ports for foreign markets, said Vilsack. Kelly Patrick Dugan/Port of Oakland “This got to the point where in Oakland there was a suspension of activity on the part The Port of Oakland, Calif., and USDA are partnering on a 25-acre “pop-up” site to of many of these carriers,” he said in a webinar expedite the loading of containers with agricultural products. on Monday. That’s why he and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg in December sent a letter to ocean carriers urging them to restore reciprocal treatment of exports and imports, including service, he said. See Initiative, Page A11
Administration takes multi-pronged approach to port disruptions
By CAROL RYAN DUMAS Capital Press The Biden administration’s Supply Chain Task Force has been “laser-focused” on agricultural exports since the disruptions began, John Porcari, ports envoy for the task force, said Jan. 31. The economics of containers is one reason for the disruption. Exporting an empty container from the U.S. is more valuable to ocean carriers than a container filled with agricultural products, he said.
Another reason is the record-setting volume of container traffic the pandemic brought to the U.S., he said during a webinar hosted by National Milk Producers Federation and U.S. Dairy Export Council. “That means an unprecedented shortage of chassis, containers, truckers and the entire ecosystem that serves freight,” he said. The third reason is lost ocean carrier service, he said. See Disruption, Page A9
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