In 2021, the world’s productive sectors face the container crisis, including the poultry sector.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of multiple ports globally during 2020. Several productive sectors were paralyzed, which had several effects. On the one hand, it led to delays and bottlenecks in the routing and delivery of goods. On the other hand, measures such as quarantines and curfews affected logistics related to maritime transport.

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The origin of the container crisis

Currently, the global economic recovery has caused all industries to increase the circulation of their products. For this reason, available containers have fewer quotas, and the value of freight rates is increasing. In 2021, the container crisis has generated price increases for dozens of products and has a major impact on the animal production industries. An example of this is that the cost of freight went from USD 2,000 per container to USD 12,000 in a few months.

The transport of goods by ship constitutes about 80% of shipment of goods and services that are traded internationally. Among these goods are raw materials used for animal feed, shipped from major producers to importing countries.

On the other hand, the increase in demand for supplies from China has global repercussions. China is a major importer of agricultural inputs, animal products, and raw materials. For this reason, a large part of these goods has been shipped to China and containers are unable to meet the demand for transportation, causing delays in deliveries and high freight costs.

Shortage of containers and its impact on poultry farming

Poultry farming in Latin America is highly dependent on raw materials shipped from other countries in the world, such as the European Union and the United States. These raw materials, such as corn and soybeans, form the basis of the feed supplied to poultry production.

On the one hand, adverse weather conditions in raw material-producing countries have damaged many crops. As a result, commodity prices have risen internationally.

On the other hand, the shortage of containers makes it difficult to transport these raw materials to the countries that import them. Both causes ultimately have an impact on the production costs of poultry farms.

In addition, another major concern is related to the poultry export sector. The container crisis means that other products have higher priority and delays, and fines are generated in egg and meat deliveries.

Currently, the availability of containers is being used for the transportation of commodities such as household appliances, clothing, and furniture. According to recent figures, trade in these products grew 5% today compared to before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.  To counter this, more containers are being manufactured mainly in China. However, the raw materials used to manufacture them such as steel are also in short supply.