Food producers in Ireland are being hit with extra charges to transport products in chilled containers, with shipping lines blaming the huge numbers of containers stuck in Chinese ports, according to Kerrygold maker Ornua's CEO.
"Everything is not operating as normal," John Jordan told the Irish Independent. "If you wanted to move product from Ireland to the US, the likelihood was that the container you wanted was stuck in a port in China so there is now a premium surcharge put on by shipping companies."
The co-operative has two main divisions: retail, where it sells directly to supermarkets, and ingredients, where it supplies produce to other manufacturers and food service companies. The retail arm has benefited from a "huge spike" in demand.
However, the collapse of the food service sector "is unlike anything before", Mr Jordan noted.
More on this story can be read from Independent.ie here.
