El Niño transport chaos hits LatAm perishables exports

When it rains, it pours. Agriculture exporters in Latin America’s southern cone have struggled with headwinds from weather hitting crops as well as transport routes, on top of gateway problems and high transport costs.

Chile’s cherry export season got off to a rocky start when truckers staged a protest about high costs that cut off access to the container terminals at the port of San Antonio. They were up in arms over stalled freight rates, rising fuel costs and new charges on the main highway between the port and Santiago.

The strike disrupted the official start of Chile’s cherry export season that was set to kick off with the sailing of the first ‘Cherry Express’ to China, scheduled for 9 November, with loading planned to commence two days earlier.

San Antonio is the nation’s main gateway for marine cherry exports, which have gained ground over airfreight in recent years. The port reportedly handles nearly half of Chile’s fruit exports.

This story was originally published by The Loadstar. Read the full story at The Loadstar →