How the dockworkers’ strike could affect the food supply

The International Longshoremen’s Association walked off the job at 36 ports from Maine to Texas at midnight Tuesday, the first such strike in almost 50 years. The strike comes as workers were protesting wages and the threat of automation, among other issues. The walkout will affect a wide swath of commodities ranging from shoes to auto parts to food and drink, with an estimated disruption of nearly $5 billion USD per day.

The food items most likely to be affected include fruits and vegetables (especially those imported from South America), chocolate, and canned goods. Some items will be in extremely short supply: about 75 percent of bananas arrive in the US from the affected ports, to illustrate one example. If you search your supermarket’s produce section, it isn’t difficult to find several foods that hail from South America, and all of those items could be affected by this strike.

Those on the East and Gulf coasts will experience the most significant impacts, and restaurants are bracing for expected shortages in fish and seafood in addition to produce. While consumer goods such as clothing, electronics, and car parts will also be hit by this strike, the effects won’t be as bad as the shipping disruptions during the pandemic. There was advance notice of the walkout so manufacturers and retailers could begin to stockpile items and arrange alternate shipping methods. Perishable items, of course, can’t be stockpiled, and there is not sufficient capacity via railroads or airplanes to make up for the lost cargo ship transports.