Agricultural distribution hubs anticipate looming rail strike

Work at Huron Commodities in Benmiller and Ingersoll has all but halted, because 90 per cent of the food grade soybeans they distribute around the world get there - at least partly - by rail.

“This has been on the calendar for a long time. It hasn't crept up on anyone. It's kind of unacceptable that we're that we're here today,” said Adam Vanderloo, president of Huron Commodities Inc.

That means Vanderloo’s soybeans sit, and local farmers fret about where this year’s crop will end up.

Huron Commodities Inc. near Benmiller, one of many businesses at a stand still thanks to rail disruption, August 22, 2024 (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

“Our customers rely on us to ship, consistently throughout the year. So we're currently holding onto last year's crop, and we need every day we can possibly get, to get rid of that crop in order to be ready to receive the new crop, which comes off in in just a few weeks,” he said.

At the nearby Port of Goderich, one of the largest ports along the Great Lakes, one might think there might be excitement about the prospect of increased marine transportation with rail traffic all but halted. But that’s not how supply chains works, said Goderich Port Management Corporation President, Frank Hurkmans.

“It's difficult to get product to the end user by boat when that end user is inland. We need trucks, we need rail. if you want to use the analogy of a three-legged stool, that as soon as you take one of those legs off, which is the rail industry for us here at most ports, that chair won't stand any longer,” said Hurkmans.

Hurkmans said Goderich’s port, which sees salt, aggregates, and grain, as their main exports, may not hurt right away, but will eventually feel the pain of the rail disruption.

“Some of the larger ports around the Great Lakes are going to feel the impact almost immediately. Thunder Bay brings primarily most of the goods that get put onto a vessel in the Thunder Bay area by rail from the west. As soon as that material stops coming in from the west, there will be nowhere to put it. There'll be no cargoes available for vessels to move to the next point. What I think we will see here in Goderich, if this isn't satisfied and fixed in short order, is there will be vessels looking to berth for a period of time because essentially, they don't have cargoes to move anywhere at the end of the day,” said Hurkmans.

Rail lines leading to the Goderich port, August 22, 2024 (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

Like most in the business community, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce is pushing for an expedited solution to the rail shutdown.

“I understand the government's preference for a negotiated settlement, but this, supply chain infrastructure is just too critical to Canada and its economy, much less, Huron County's economy, for it to go on for any length of time,” said Colin Carmichael, executive director of the Huron County Chamber of Commerce.

Back at Huron Commodities, there’s really only one thing to do, said Vanderloo; “we wait.”