News
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has launched a program to make direct payments to farm producers shipping overseas. It is available to exporters using container ports in Oakland, Seattle or Tacoma. The program is schedule to continue through the end of the year.
The USDA pays agricultural shippers $200 for every container of farm goods they export. Exporters using refrigerated containers for perishable commodities can receive $400 per container. Exporters can receive an extra $125 for every empty container they pick up at a designated Oakland storage depot. USDA payments are intended to offset soaring shipping costs resulting from global supply chain breakdowns and the expense of additional container moves. Agricultural exports from Oakland and other U.S. ports have declined since last year due to the chaos.
