Disruption and delays. That’s the short-term reality for shipping, created by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md., after a container vessel collided with one of the bridge’s support pillars on March 26.

Its effect on the ag industry is still in question. Before the disaster, Baltimore’s port had led the nation in the movement of roll-on, roll-off farm and construction machinery, tallying a record 1.3 million tons, worth $9 billion, in 2023. The port also ranks first for auto and light-truck imports, handling a record 850,000 vehicles last year.

The port ranks 11th overall in ag imports, according to USDA, and second for sugar imports. Soybeans, grain such as corn and wheat, forestry products, coffee, and grocery items also move through the port, as well as $2 billion in chemicals annually.

Referencing industry information, Ward Forquer, sales associate for Michigan Ag Commodities, says the Port of Baltimore handles about a third of the East Coast’s UAN trade. “Prices are tightening in the Northeast in the aftermath of the bridge’s collapse,” he says.

$15M daily loss

Time is of the essence when calculating supply chain disruptions, which are expected to have short- and long-term impacts. Mary Kane, president of the Maryland Chamber of Commerce, says the loss of the port and bridge is costing $15 million a day.

Logistic experts have rerouted cargo vessels to the ports of Philadelphia; Norfolk, Va.; and New York and New Jersey, potentially adding costs for land transport.

The Port of Baltimore handled a record 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo worth $80 billion in 2023, according to a report from Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s office.

According to the Maryland Department of Transportation Port Administration, the port’s facilities have been handling more roll-on, roll-off cargo each year. Its roughly 200-acre Dundalk Marine Terminal gives it an edge over competing ports.

With its inland location, Baltimore has a distinct advantage. Its port is within an overnight drive of two-thirds of the U.S. population and is closer to the Midwest than any other East Coast port.

Every major manufacturer, including John Deere, Agco, both brands of CNH, Caterpillar and Massey Ferguson, use the Baltimore port, according to John Schmeiser, chief operating officer of the North American Equipment Dealers Association.

Short term, he says, the industry is probably OK, but will have to deal with disruption. He tracks reports from equipment dealers, which show sufficient levels of new inventory.

“However, the longer it takes to find alternate ports and some efficiencies in working with these alternate ports — like trucking or rail to get equipment out — the more potential for negative impact,” he says, noting that means possible price increases to customers, as well as equipment shortages.

“Our industry really thrives on stability — stability in commodity prices, stability in interest rates, stability in just-in-time delivery on equipment, stability of the parts supply and availability, stability in our economy. …,” he adds. “During the pandemic, a lot of instability was created. Looking back, I think our industry adjusted very well, but nobody was anticipating a return of instability on this grand scale so quickly.”

While it is the country’s major port for large farming equipment, retailers remain optimistic the industry will find a way to pivot. Jacob Lloyd of Sterling Farm Equipment, with four locations in northeast Ohio, says, “The impact will not be significant, or possibly at all.”

Regarding parts availability, Schmeiser says, “All major manufacturers have done a wonderful job of establishing parts depots across North America. However, sometimes parts need to be secured from a parts dealer in Western Europe, which could mean a potential delay. This just reminds us how fragile our supply chain system can be.”

Sugar impact

The ASR Group’s Domino Sugar refinery in Baltimore boasts the second-highest sugar production capacity in the United States, producing 40 different sugar products. Raw sugar from cane is the largest bulk import item into the Port of Baltimore.

ASR Group on March 26 said it did not expect an impact on sugar production at the plant in the short term: “The Baltimore refinery has six to eight weeks of raw sugar supply on hand with a ship currently discharging at the dock and another that finished unloading on Monday. … Our network of production facilities and warehouses across the United States all currently have healthy inventories of finished products that can be utilized if necessary.”

By quantity, over 25% of all U.S. imported raw beet and cane sugar enters the U.S. through Baltimore — 562,000 metric tons valued at $391 million. 

Jim Byrum, an ag policy consultant and former president of the Michigan Agri-Business Association, says, “If they can’t easily get cane to the Domino plant, it may help sales of beet sugar from Michigan.”

Rob Clark doesn’t think so. He’s director of communications and community relations at the Michigan Sugar Co. “We don’t anticipate any immediate impact or even short-term disruptions that would impact the market,” he says.

Byrum expects a disruption, but “probably not huge.” He says, “The quicker they can get a sea crane in there to move bridge pieces, the better. If they can get the center of the Patapsco River cleared, where the water is deeper, it will allow the large container ships through. I think it will be reopened pretty darn quick.”

Soy situation

While the port does export soybeans — 415,678 metric tons in 2023 — its impact will be more regional, It handles only 0.9% of the nation’s total soybean exports by value and quantity, according to USDA’s Global Agricultural Trade System.

“The Port of Baltimore exported 5.2 million bushels of soybeans in containers in 2020, so it is a vital port for our industry,” says Julia Brown, director of communications for the Ohio Soybean Council. “However, Baltimore is not a major port for Ohio soybeans, which mostly leave the country through ports in Norfolk and New York/New Jersey.”

She doesn’t expect Ohio farmers or shippers to feel an immediate impact, but “as ships are forced to reroute to other ports like Norfolk and New York/New Jersey, it may cause delays and traffic that could eventually impact us here.”

Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition, echoes Brown’s words.  “However, if you saw the lower Mississippi River get shut down, it would be seismic and have a very profound impact,” he says. “The Mississippi Gulf near New Orleans is the No. 1 export region for soybeans and exports 35 million metric tons. This doesn’t have that same kind of significance, at least to our industry.”

However, looking at the situation more broadly, he says there is an interconnectivity to everything. With freight being rerouted to other ports, “you might see exports out of Norfolk — where we export a lot of container rice, soybeans and grain — get congested. Time will tell.”

Human impact

The slowdown in shipping at the port will likely affect workers. According to the government of Maryland, the port generates over $3.3 billion in personal income, 15,330 direct jobs and 139,190 related jobs.

The extent of the impact varies by product and region, but every state exports through that port to some degree. Although not broken out by product, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics documents $15.46 billion in total maritime Baltimore exports in 2023, as reported by American Farm Bureau Federation. Michigan and Ohio both have more than $1.3 billion in exports through the port, which is believed to be largely automobiles and parts.

The U.S. exports $8 billion in vehicles and parts through that port while importing $27 billion.

Obviously, Maryland contributes the most with more than $5.1 billion in exports, followed by Pennsylvania with almost $2.6 billion. But even far-West states, like California with $54 million in exports, have a stake.