COLUMBIA, Mo., (DTN) -- With fall harvest and grain shipping reaching a peak, agricultural groups are calling on the Biden administration to protect agricultural shippers from a growing number of transportation bottlenecks.
The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) on Friday led a letter to President Joe Biden signed by 195 agricultural groups. The letter warns about shipping disruptions that risk having "a ripple effect across the entire United States." The groups urged the Biden administration to take immediate action to mitigate the growing shipping challenges.
Mike Seyfert, president and CEO of NGFA, said agricultural shippers are trying to get ahead of multiple issues such as a possible port strike as early as next week and mounting problems right now trying to rail grain into Mexico.
"It's just kind of a set of challenges and they're all kind of hitting here at the same time," Seyfert said. "As we've learned before, what happens if we get supply chain disruptions in the middle of harvest? It doesn't take long for things to start backing up."
The letter highlighted the "three-legged stool" grain shippers use to move commodities to markets -- trucking, rail and waterways. "A balanced and efficient operation of all three is essential to moving our products throughout the United States, North America, and abroad."
Grain exports have been moving well to this point of harvest. USDA's weekly Grain Transportation Report shows for the week ended Sep. 19, there were 2.4 million metric tons of grain inspected for export, up 40% from the previous week, up 48% from the same week a year ago, and up 66% from the 3-year, 4-week average.
While grain movement and export numbers are higher than a year ago, Seyfert said the movement could be higher than it is.
EYES ON POTENTIAL PORT STRIKE
Approximately 40% of U.S. containerized agricultural exports move through East and Gulf Coast ports, the groups noted in their letter.
The letter pointed to concerns about negotiations between the International Longshoremen's Association and the United States Maritime Alliance which are stalled right now. The labor agreement is set to expire Monday, Sept. 30, and farm groups warned the impact on the supply chain "will quickly reverberate throughout the agricultural economy, shutting down operations and potentially lowering farmgate prices."
The strike could affect a series of major ports up and down the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico.
Associated Press reported Friday that Biden administration officials told members of the United States Maritime Alliance that they should be negotiating with the union ahead of the contract expiring. Administration officials have delivered a similar message to the union this week, AP reported.
Seyfert said he has heard from NGFA members who are hearing that containers are now being delayed as the ports wind down in preparation for a strike.
"We don't need a self-inflicted wound here with a strike," Seyfert said. "They don't wait until Sept. 30 to wind down. Folks have to start winding down and start repositioning prior to that. We saw that when we had the possible rail strike and we're starting to see that now. And once they start to wind down, it's not just a flip of the switch when you start to kick it back up, even if they don't strike. It's going to take time to get everything back up."
The agricultural groups called on the White House to "bring the parties to the table, mediate a negotiation, and be prepared to step in should a strike or lockout occur to ensure port operations continue."
The groups added, "It is critical that the administration work with both parties to resume negotiations and avoid work stoppages at the ports. As ports prepare for a potential work stoppage, an emergency hours of service waiver from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for truck drivers at East and Gulf Coast ports would be helpful."
DTN has highlighted concerns about a potential strike. See, https://www.dtnpf.com/…
MEXICO AND RAIL
The agricultural groups said agricultural shipping challenges right now are compounded by Mexican imposed embargoes on U.S. agricultural shipments to Mexico. For the past two weeks, Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe (UP and BNSF) have not offered any shuttle bids for delivery. The railroads cited a backlog of grain inspections at the border for halting bids for grain shuttle trains.
The bottleneck with Mexico is coming on the Mexican side of the border where grain inspections have stalled, and Mexican officials may be prioritizing freight.
"It seems to kind of be a combination of several things, but the concern we have with it is that it hasn't gotten any better and it doesn't look like it's going to get better on the horizon and, as you know, we're in the heart of harvest now," Seyfert said.
The ripple effect for grain elevators is that as shuttle cars are stalled, it affects their ability to get rail cars back for their next possible shipments. "It starts to impact some folks' ability to then be able to do that next turn that they were planning on doing which may or may not be Mexico," Seyfert said.
Overall, USDA's Grain Transportation Report this week shows railroads originated 22,476 grain carloads the week of Sept. 14, up 14% from a year ago.
The agricultural groups noted Mexico is the industry's largest export partner with more than $30 billion in U.S. agricultural products shipped over the past year.
"However, limited access to this crucial market persists as North American trade growth has outpaced Mexican rail capacity," the letter stated. "The rail challenges in Mexico are not confined and can extend to other agricultural rail shipments. Immediate support from the U.S. government is urgently needed to restore full trade access with Mexico for U.S. agriculture."
DTN Basis Analyst Mary Kennedy noted secondary shuttle freight at midweek went to no offers. BNSF cars Thursday night were bid plus $1,500 per car over tariff for returns and October and UP cars for returns and October were bid plus $1,000 per car.
"This is telling in that it likely means sellers can't or won't guarantee placements. If the dust should ever settle, you could see some pretty high prices for secondary freight as we are into soybean and corn harvest," Kennedy said.
The Sept. 27 service metrics reported to the Surface Transportation Board don't show any alarming amount of past due orders on either the BNSF or UP, but as harvest rolls along and more rail orders are placed, that might change, Kennedy said.
"Various shuttle loaders in North Dakota have expressed concern about fall rail service if the issues in Mexico are not solved, as the soybean harvest is in full swing and corn is not far behind," she said.
RIVER LEVELS
Hurricane Helene has devastated the Southeast U.S., but shippers are also watching to see if rainfall reaches the Ohio or Mississippi River valleys to help deal with low flows on the Mississippi River channel.
Inland river shipping also is under pressure from situations such as low water levels on the Mississippi River that is forcing barges to carry lighter loads. Agricultural groups are calling on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to keep dredging the river to maintain a 12-foot-deep channel.
The Grain Transportation Report this week noted barge costs for soybeans and corn from Minneapolis to the Gulf are 37% higher than a year ago.
Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com
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