U.S. dairy product exports hard to contain

U.S. dairy exporters continued to overcome logistical challenges in July, moving more products into international markets compared to the same month a year earlier for a sixth consecutive month. USDA July agricultural export figures were released on Sept. 2. According to a monthly update from the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC), the numbers remain strong. Before we get to the numbers, however, the U.S. Dairy Exporter Blog puts some of the export challenges posed by U.S. port congestion into context. July 2021 total outbound shipments of all products through the major California ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Oakland were lower than any point in the past year, and the quantity of full containers shipped out of California ports was the lowest in over a decade. Container companies opted to transport empty containers back to Asia to shorten turnaround times rather than pick up U.S. agricultural products – unless exporters were willing to pay extravagant prices and extra fees, ...