The growth and market share at the Port of Savannah continues to be one of the jewels of economic development in Georgia. On Thursday, the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) announced that their Savannah flagship has become the top port in the country for agricultural exports, moving 15.8 percent exports, compared to 15.3 percent in Los Angeles. Long Beach came in third with 10.2 percent.
The GPA attributed the growth to the port’s proximity to major producers, access via road and rail and a broad global network.
“Agriculture is a major driver for Georgia’s economy, contributing $74 billion in annual economic benefit and nearly 400,000 jobs across the state,” said Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. “As this country’s No. 1 port for the export of agricultural products, Savannah provides vital support for the state and nation, helping our farmers reach overseas buyers efficiently.”
Agriculture accounted for 60 percent of the port’s exports in 2019, approximately 843,000 twenty-foot equivalent container units (TEU – think the container on the back of a semi-truck). The largest share of exports were made up of forest products – such as wood pulp, paper and logs. Clay, cotton and poultry rounded out the top items.
“The production of raw material and agricultural goods, along with their supply chains, have remained strong throughout the pandemic,” said Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch. “The powerful commitment by the agricultural sector mirrors that of GPA’s employees, the International Longshoremen’s Association and the rest of our maritime logistics community.”
The GPA has played a particularly important role during the COVID-19 pandemic, tasked with ensuring supply chains have remained open and running despite the chaos. They have focused on ensuring empty containers are available to support the movement of export commodities, assisted by association with the South Atlantic Chassis Pool II and the completion of a new on-terminal chassis yard.
The Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC) hosted a webinar on Wednesday with more than 125 exporters and featured Lynch. AgTC is the largest organization of its kind in the U.S., with members drawn from agriculture exporters and importers, freight forwarders, agriculture trade associations, and the state departments of agriculture.
Peter Friedmann, executive director of AgTC stated, “For our members, the cost-effective movement of goods is a key factor in the profitability of farm and processor operations; working with the leadership of the nation’s international gateways, such as Port of Savannah, serves mutual interests of the port and ag exporters in growing cargo volumes. We look forward to expanding these relationships, and appreciate Mr. Lynch’s most effective dialogue with our members this week.”
More than 439,000 jobs are supported by the GPA, contributing more than $25 billion in income, $106 billion in revenue and $2.9 billion in state and local taxes to Georgia’s economy. The Port of Savannah handled 8.5 percent of U.S. containerized cargo volume and 10 percent of all U.S. containerized exports in FY2017.
