Agricultural export tonnage has grown 233 per cent at the Port of Oakland in the last five years, a figure that has transformed the port’s trade profile, making Oakland a leading gateway to Asia – especially for California growers.
That’s the message a Port executive will deliver today (20 January) to members of the California Trucking Association: “Agricultural commodities now account for 53 per cent of our total export tonnage,” Business Development Manager Beth Frisher will tell motor carriers at their annual membership meeting this afternoon in Monterey. “And California growers are producing the lion’s share of that amount.”
Frisher said that in 2016, farm exports shipped from Oakland totaled 3.9m metric tons, up from 1.2m metric tonnes in 2012. She added that California producers accounted for 70 per cent of agricultural exports last year.
Frisher listed three reasons for the surge in farm exports, namely Asia's growing middle class clamouring for high-quality US farm products; Oakland being the last West Coast port of call before ships head back to Asia; and Oakland being the closest port for growers in the Sacramento, San Joaquin, Salinas and Napa valleys who export to Asia.
Fruits and nuts are the leading agricultural commodity shipped from Oakland, Frisher said, with Japan, China and South Korea the top three trading partners for Oakland’s agricultural exports.
Oakland reported a 10.5 per cent increase in total export volume last year. Exports accounted for 53 per cent of the Port’s overall containerised cargo volume. Imports made up the rest. Oakland is one of the only US ports weighted more heavily toward exports.
Frisher said 2017 could be another year of export growth – especially in agricultural commodities. Heavy rains this winter have eased five years of drought, she said. The result should be bountiful harvests next fall.
