California Container Shortage and Phase One Ends Today
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with your Agribusiness Update.**After already struggling with drought, California farmers have lost big overseas sales numbers because of a serious shortage of shipping containers brought on by COVID-19.
A UC-Davis study says the state’s farm belt lost $2.1 billion in exports during a five-month stretch this year because of “containergeddon.”
A University of Connecticut study says the supply chain mess tying up world commerce has cost California growers 17% of their export sales from May to September.
**Spending on USDA's food and nutrition assistance programs jumped 30% in fiscal year 2020 to an inflation-adjusted record of $122.1 billion, abruptly reversing a six-year decline.
This federal response to assistance during the COVID pandemic included USDA waivers allowing flexibility in the administration of 15 existing food and nutrition assistance programs and the creation of two programs, Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer and the Farmers to Families Food Box Program.
www.agrimarketing.com/s/139212
**As we reach the end of the Phase One Trade Deal today, China has purchased U.S. ag commodities at a faster pace
than last year.
American Farm Bureau Federation senior economist, Veronica Nigh says thru November, we exported $30 billion dollars to China, up 33% from the same time period in 2020.
Nigh says Phase One ends today, making the relationship between U.S. and China all the more complicated going into 2022.