On October 1, dockworkers across the East Coast and the Gulf went on strike, halting around half of the United States’ shipping. The strike began because the workers’ union International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the employer group United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) could not agree to a new six-year contract by the negotiated deadline on Sep 30.

How will this impact the restaurant and restaurant supplier industries?

Since around half of all United States shipping is done through these ports, the situation could result in higher costs for all imported goods. Many of those goods will be food and disposable supplies.

Peter Sand, the chief analyst for Xeneta, an ocean freight intelligence platform, said that he anticipates this strike to last a week. A halt in shipping for even that short a duration could have longer-lasting implications. This is because the ships that are delayed in the US now, will continue to be delayed as they return to Asia or Europe for their next shipment, causing a ripple effect that could impact the global economy.

The longer this strike goes the wider the economic impact will be for a greater period of time. This impact could cause a shortage in imported food and goods for restaurants and their suppliers as well as a potential increase in costs for those imported products.