Supply Chain Almonds -- USAGM
Metadata
- Supply Chain Almonds -- USAGM
- April 12, 2022
- Language English
- Transcript/Script English Supply Chain Almonds TV HEADLINE: US Almond Growers Face Shipping Hurdles TEASER: California almond farmers and international consumers cope with supply chain blockages PUBLISHED AT: 4/12/2022 at 655pm BYLINE: Mike O’Sullivan CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Modesto, California VIDEOGRAPHER: Roy Kim, Timothy Hong, Mike O’Sullivan VIDEO EDITOR: Mike O’Sullivan SCRIPT EDITORS: Bowman, Reifenrath VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, AP PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __ TRT: 2:35 VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen TYPE: EDITOR NOTES:)) ((INTRODUCTION)) [[Backups at US West Coast ports and supply chain problems in rail and trucking have hurt American exports and limited the choices of international consumers. For one farm commodity, California almonds, the slowdowns have affected American farmers and consumers around the world. Mike O'Sullivan reports from California's Central Valley.]] ((NARRATOR)) 80 percent of the world’s almonds come from California. They are eaten as a snack and used in cooking and in popular foods such as almond milk. David Phippen is a third-generation grower. He also processes almonds for more than 120 other growers. ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “A good deal of our production goes to Japan. A lot of it goes to Dubai. We have some production in-shell that goes into the Indian markets. And I’d say 25 percent of our production goes into European markets.” ((NARRATOR)) Most shipments go through the port of Oakland, but there’s a problem. A surge in shipments of goods from Asia has made it less profitable for ships to wait for American exports to be loaded for their return trips. At congested West Coast ports, many container ships unload their cargo, then turn around and hurry back to Asia with empty containers. ((CREDIT: The White House)) It’s a problem noted in Washington, where the Biden administration and some in Congress hope to strengthen federal oversight of shipping. [[FOR RADIO: “Phippen says the industry needs help.”]] ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “If we don’t present the almonds to market, we can’t bring payment back to the United States and pay our growers. And our growers are dependent on those payments to produce the next crop that’s hanging on the trees as we speak.” ((NARRATOR)) Almonds can be stored for more than two years under the right conditions, but the industry is losing opportunities, says Richard Waycott, the head of an industry marketing and research organization. ((Richard Waycott, Almond Board of California President/CEO)) “With a food product, if you don’t ship it when consumption is happening in the country that you’re shipping to, for example, Chinese New Year or the big Diwali holidays in India, et cetera, it doesn’t get consumed.” ((NARRATOR)) The backup is visible in row after row of storage containers. [[FOR RADIO: “David Phippen.”]] ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “What’s really worrisome for my partners and I is that this building needs to be empty before the next harvest starts so that we can place yet another crop in here.” ((NARRATOR)) The harvest will start in August. ((SHOW STACKS OF WOODEN CRATES)) Meanwhile, Phippen has bought 3,000 wooden containers to store the excess. ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “And this won’t solve the problem, but it deals with the problem.” ((NARRATOR)) One local market is still intact. Farmers use the soft outer hull of the almond as feed for dairy cows and the shells for livestock bedding — a careful use of resources that’s part of modern farming. The shipping problems come in the midst of a multi-year drought that has also challenged California’s farmers. Mike O’Sullivan, VOA News, near Modesto, California.
- Transcript/Script Supply Chain Almonds TV HEADLINE: US Almond Growers Face Shipping Hurdles TEASER: California almond farmers and international consumers cope with supply chain blockages PUBLISHED AT: 4/12/2022 at 655pm BYLINE: Mike O’Sullivan CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Modesto, California VIDEOGRAPHER: Roy Kim, Timothy Hong, Mike O’Sullivan VIDEO EDITOR: Mike O’Sullivan SCRIPT EDITORS: Bowman, Reifenrath VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, AP PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __ TRT: 2:35 VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen TYPE: EDITOR NOTES:)) ((INTRODUCTION)) [[Backups at US West Coast ports and supply chain problems in rail and trucking have hurt American exports and limited the choices of international consumers. For one farm commodity, California almonds, the slowdowns have affected American farmers and consumers around the world. Mike O'Sullivan reports from California's Central Valley.]] ((NARRATOR)) 80 percent of the world’s almonds come from California. They are eaten as a snack and used in cooking and in popular foods such as almond milk. David Phippen is a third-generation grower. He also processes almonds for more than 120 other growers. ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “A good deal of our production goes to Japan. A lot of it goes to Dubai. We have some production in-shell that goes into the Indian markets. And I’d say 25 percent of our production goes into European markets.” ((NARRATOR)) Most shipments go through the port of Oakland, but there’s a problem. A surge in shipments of goods from Asia has made it less profitable for ships to wait for American exports to be loaded for their return trips. At congested West Coast ports, many container ships unload their cargo, then turn around and hurry back to Asia with empty containers. ((CREDIT: The White House)) It’s a problem noted in Washington, where the Biden administration and some in Congress hope to strengthen federal oversight of shipping. [[FOR RADIO: “Phippen says the industry needs help.”]] ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “If we don’t present the almonds to market, we can’t bring payment back to the United States and pay our growers. And our growers are dependent on those payments to produce the next crop that’s hanging on the trees as we speak.” ((NARRATOR)) Almonds can be stored for more than two years under the right conditions, but the industry is losing opportunities, says Richard Waycott, the head of an industry marketing and research organization. ((Richard Waycott, Almond Board of California President/CEO)) “With a food product, if you don’t ship it when consumption is happening in the country that you’re shipping to, for example, Chinese New Year or the big Diwali holidays in India, et cetera, it doesn’t get consumed.” ((NARRATOR)) The backup is visible in row after row of storage containers. [[FOR RADIO: “David Phippen.”]] ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “What’s really worrisome for my partners and I is that this building needs to be empty before the next harvest starts so that we can place yet another crop in here.” ((NARRATOR)) The harvest will start in August. ((SHOW STACKS OF WOODEN CRATES)) Meanwhile, Phippen has bought 3,000 wooden containers to store the excess. ((David Phippen, Travaille & Phippen Partner)) “And this won’t solve the problem, but it deals with the problem.” ((NARRATOR)) One local market is still intact. Farmers use the soft outer hull of the almond as feed for dairy cows and the shells for livestock bedding — a careful use of resources that’s part of modern farming. The shipping problems come in the midst of a multi-year drought that has also challenged California’s farmers. Mike O’Sullivan, VOA News, near Modesto, California.
- NewsML Media Topics Economy, Business and Finance
- Topic Tags Almonds
- Network VOA
- Embargo Date April 12, 2022 19:06 EDT
- Description English Backups at US West Coast ports and supply chain problems in rail and trucking have hurt American exports and limited the choices of international consumers. For one farm commodity, California almonds, the slowdowns have affected American farmers and consumers around the world. Mike O'Sullivan reports from California's Central Valley.
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English