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Same hassles, different year for shipping and transporting ag goods

Some transportation experts are saying the shipments of agricultural commodities may face similar challenges this year.

Brownfield’s Kellan Heavican has more from the Transportation Go! Conference in Omaha, Nebraska.

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Executive Director Eric Wenberg with the Specialty Soya and Grains Alliance says the cost of transporting goods have dropped, but scheduling backlogs persist.   

TrasnporationGo 1 :12      “authority.” 

“We need trains that run faster and on time.  We need the staffs of the ports abroad to finish their collective bargaining associations with the ports’ authority.” 

He says commodity groups, state and federal governments and transportation stakeholders need to work together to build a secure supply chain. “That means getting grains and oil seeds, beef and pork and other wonderful commodities we have here out to foreign markets where people want to buy them.” 

David Briggs, general manager of Scoular Global Shipping says there’s some good news if shipping companies remain financially healthy because there’s… 

TransporationGo 2 :14      “awhile.” 

“A need to reposition containers back to cheaper destinations or cheaper countries where you can store that equipment.  We’re going to see better execution, more partnership from ocean carriers and it’s probably going to be that way for awhile.” 

But both Wenberg and Briggs say a slowing global economy could impact the demand and cost of transportation.