Even following reports of truck shortages affecting potato and onion markets in the western U.S., growers and shippers are saying they have yet to see an impact on rates.
Last week, it was reported that the western United States was seeing truck shortages with the trucking industry undergoing rightsizing of capacity due to decreased demand. The report indicated that the industry has seen a reduction of approximately 7,000 carrier authorities each month throughout the current year and that similar reefer truck shortages have sporadically affected other regions, including Florida and the Chicago area in 2024 as well.
At Pleasant Valley Potato in Aberdeen, Idaho, Ryan Wahlen is seeing fairly normal trucking activity for this time of year. "Compared to earlier this fall, current rates are probably up around 10 percent," he says. "Typically, after the New Year's holiday, rates go back down to pre-holiday rates."
Wahlen does note that during the week before Thanksgiving, truck rates were significantly higher–up about 30 to 40 percent over what they were a month earlier. However, that could be because there was a shortage of available reefer cars on rail at the time. "That's a big factor. The railroad hasn't been able to forecast the empty car demand well. Every year they try to forecast it and it generally ends up being short," he says.
Driver availability an issue
Wahlen also adds that if anything, a shortage of drivers would also be what leads to a lack of supply. "Drivers are as hard to come by right now as they have ever been," he says.
Another factor that is likely influencing the availability of trucks in the Western U.S. is shipping an item of another kind. "We're not feeling a shortage of transportation for what we're doing. Historically, availability at this time of year is tight because everybody is shipping Christmas trees out of the Northwest. It just means it may cost a bit more but that happens every year," says Tony Wisdom of Skagit Valley Farm in Burlington, Washington. He adds that a significant volume of trees are shipped out of southwest Washington and the northwest of Oregon. "That often wraps up around December 20th and then pricing often comes back down for trucks," Wisdom says.
For more information:
Ryan Wahlen
Pleasant Valley Potato
http://www.pleasantvalleypotato.com/
Tony Wisdom
Skagit Valley Farms
[email protected]