Some 580 containers of fruit – mainly – are believed to be heading for the US East Coast
Fears are growing among Chile’s fruit exporters about the fallout from the strike by longshoremen in US East Coast ports. With around 580 currently containers on the water and due to arrive in the coming days, there are fears that delays in unloading consignments at the 36 affected ports will affect the quality of the fruit.
According to Frutas de Chile, these containers correspond to approximately 11,743 tonnes of fruit, comprising (11,362 tonnes of citrus, 177 tonnes of kiwifruit and 204 tonnes of avocados, with an estimated FOB value of US$37mn.”
The walkout will also require the rescheduling of shipping routes and containers that could be caught in the conflict.
In the US meanwhile, there is growing concern that a prolonged strike could revive inflation and cause shortages of goods.
Miguel Canala-Echeverría, general manager of Frutas de Chile, commented: “We regret that an agreement has not been reached between the parties, and today global logistics is faced with the challenge of a paralysis of ports along the entire east coast of the US.
“At Frutas de Chile we are monitoring the situation very closely, since if the conflict extends over time it could affect fruit that is in transit. Currently, our records indicate that more than 580 containers of fresh Chilean fruit would be affected, some of which would have been left in Panama due to the impossibility of continuing to their destination or that they could not be unloaded upon reaching the east coast, leaving the ship on the road with the associated costs and the loss of delivery programmes to distributors in the US”.
