Many people believe California will see problems from a port shutdown again in the future and starting communications now may help out the process then.
The port shutdown last year hit the agriculture industry hard as overseas exports came to a halt for an extended period of time. Almond Board of California CEO Richard Waycott says the state is destined to have the same problem in the future. “It will come up again,” Waycott said. “Secretary (Karen) Ross’ recommendation, and Secretary (Tom) Vilsack’s as well, is that we not wait until the slowdown begins again, but we get out in front of it like we do with a lot of things.”
Waycott agrees with those opinions and says that good relationships now will make that process easier down the road. “Build those relationships and build those understandings,” Waycott said. “It’s not that you have the total surety that you are going to avoid it, but at least there would be a dialogue there and they’d have a better understanding of the industry, how growers and producers are really being hurt by this.”