Nearly 300 organizations exporting ag and forest products are urging Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to protect exporters and their access to foreign markets.
In a letter to the secretary, the coalition alleges that carriers are declining to ship U.S. exports and imposing charges reaching into hundreds of millions of dollars.
“The burden on hardworking exporters, manufacturers, farmers, ranchers and our rural communities is overwhelming,” the letter reads.
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Decades of industry consolidation have led to fewer than a dozen foreign carriers controlling the ports.
The letter is signed by several of California’s top ag trade groups and companies.
