Longshoreman (A new term for me!) that work the East Coast ports are on strike, while the West Coast ports remain open. Shipping containers are being rerouted to the west coast that would normally come to the East Coast. This means a little longer transit time for some imports as they need to then be shipped across the country either by semi or train.
“The strike was expected to involve 25,000 workers, according to USMX, and close 14 ports: Baltimore; Boston; Charleston, South Carolina; Jacksonville, Florida; Miami (USMX groups Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with the Port of Miami); Houston; Mobile, Alabama; New Orleans; New York/New Jersey; Norfolk, Virginia; Philadelphia; Savannah, Georgia; Tampa, Florida; and Wilmington, Delaware.”
“More than 75% of U.S. bananas arrive at ports handled by the International Longshoremen's Association, or ILA, according to the Farm Bureau. Beyond the perishable fruit, nearly 90% of imported cherries, 85% of canned foodstuffs, 82% of hot peppers and 80% of chocolate that arrive via waterborne vessels are offloaded from containers at these ports”, stated Daniel Munch, American Farm Bureau Federation Economist.
Hopefully, the ILA and United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) can come to an agreement soon. In the meantime, I am sure we will see this strike impact us as consumers. That impact will largely depend on how long these strikes last. And those impacts will stretch beyond the grocery store.
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