A new contract deadline is looming for port workers on the East and Gulf coasts. The U.S. Meat Export Federation says another work stoppage will impact red meat exports if a new agreement isn’t reached by Jan. 15.
“On the pork side, 45 percent of our waterborne exports go off the East or Gulf Coast, and on the beef side, 30 percent of our waterborne exports originate from either the Gulf or the East Coast ports,” explains USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom. “For every week of a potential shutdown, it would be a loss in excess of $100 million just on beef and pork exports.”
Contract negotiations between the International Longshoremen’s Association and the U.S. Maritime Alliance broke down in mid-November. The two sides reached a tentative agreement on wages in early October. However, that contract extension is set to expire Jan. 15. Halstrom says the impasse is already impacting the industry.
We already have exporters, I’m sure, diverting cargo, or planning to divert cargo. Ocean carriers are
anticipating that, so we already have surcharges in place,” he says. “A lot of our cargo is refrigerated, so there’s also the very real possibility that prior to January 15, a lot of these ports may stop accepting refrigerated cargo just because of the uncertainty around the contract.”
A port strike could impact U.S. beef and pork’s advantage and reputation as a reliable supplier.
Our customers in regions like the Caribbean and regions like Central America, into Europe, into South America, even into the Middle East, a lot of that originates off the east coast,” Hasltrom says. “Being able to supply our buyers on a regular basis in a reliable manner is is definitely at risk. So this encourages them to look at alternative sources of supply, be it from South America, be it from Australia.
