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Great Lakes Seaway reports increased grain movement 

The Administrator for the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway says the trade route is becoming more important to the agricultural industry as exports increase.

“U.S. and Canadian Great Lakes ports are eager, hungry, ready, and capable to support increased export of agricultural goods.”

Adam Tindall-Schlicht tells Brownfield the war in Ukraine and drought conditions on the Mississippi River system were likely factors behind increased movement in 2022.

“U.S. grain exports have been one of the success stories of Great Lakes trade last year, we saw a four percent year over year increase in the amount of tonnage that was exported,” he shares.

He says an incentive partnership with Soybean Transportation Coalition, which offers a 50 percent reduction on shipping tolls for new shipments of soybeans and ag freight, has also helped move more goods

Tindall-Schlicht says he’s impressed by the amount of investment ports are making into agricultural commodity handling.

“Toledo; Cleveland; Duluth, Minnesota; Oswego, New York; Monroe, Michigan; Milwaukee, Wisconsin—these are some of the places and Great Lakes ports that are making investments now to help sustain really robust agricultural activity,” he says.

The Seaway will open to international traffic March 22 and Tindall-Schlicht expects an even more robust year in 2023.