AGRICULTURAL TRANSPORTATION
EFFICIENCY COALITION
and forest products from farms and forests to processing facilities.
Truck Transportation is Essential to U.S. Agriculture
For the agricultural sector of the U.S. economy, efficient commercial agricultural transportation services are the indispensable link with markets, both here and overseas. For most agricultural and rural communities, the dependency on truck transportation is growing.
The reform of the sizes and weights of trucks allowed to operate on federal highways is an issue of significant and immediate importance to the entire U.S. agriculture industry, and our economy.
The U.S. agricultural sector is the largest user of freight transportation services in this country. In fact, by adding the movements of raw agricultural commodities (fruits, vegetables, livestock, grains, timber) together with the movements of processed products (feedstuffs, canned food, lumber) and agricultural inputs (fertilizer, pesticides, machinery), agriculture accounts for nearly one-third of all freight transportation services provided in this country.
The "modal share" that portion of total tonnage or ton-miles that moves by a specific mode of transport-barge, rail, truck, or other-varies widely by commodity. Trucks are the primary mover of agricultural products, with a modal share of 45 percent of all agricultural commodities (including produce, livestock, meats and poultry, dairy products, forest and horticultural products), but for some commodities truck transport may account for 90 percent or more.
The trucking industry and the United States agricultural sector have a significant impact on the total U.S. economy. The United States agriculture sector accounts for about 13 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) and 18 percent of domestic employment in the U.S., according to a Government Accounting Office (GAO) report in 2003.
The United States agricultural sector depends extensively upon truck transportation for a number of reasons:
- Agricultural and food production typically occurs in areas substantially removed from the final markets of agricultural products.
- Production and processing are generally dispersed over wide areas or regions.
- Agricultural commodities and products tend to be impacted significantly by energy issues and energy prices since many are bulky (grains, timber, etc.) and of low value.
- Other commodities (such as fresh fruits, vegetables and meats) are highly perishable and of high value.
- Livestock and other commodities require specialized handling and equipment
Modern commercial agriculture is also input-intensive, using a broad range of products from fertilizers to feed additives. These inputs generate high demands for truck transportation, and their costs are affected by the price and availability of various forms of energy, primarily oil.
The trucking industry is essential to agriculture as trucks are now the primary transport mode for the movement of all major agricultural commodities. For example:
- Trucks are the leading transport mode for the movement of fresh fruits and vegetables in the United States, with a market share of over 90 percent.
- Trucks are the largest carrier of produce to ocean ports for export.
- Ninety-five percent of livestock transportation is handled by truck, and fresh dairy products are primarily handled by trucks over relatively short distances.
- Nearly 90 percent of all raw wood (logs and pulpwood) is transported to the point of primary processing by trucks.
- According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s latest grain transportation modal share analysis released in October 2004, trucks transported 68.4 percent
of all domestic grain movements in the United States during the year 2000. This fact reflects a significant change in modal share from 1978 - 2000, particularly
between rail and truck modes. Rail and barge shares decreased, while truck shares increased through 2000, making trucks the dominant mode for grain transport in
the United States. The 2004 report is the latest data available from USDA on grain transport modal shares. - The latest trucking industry forecast calls for trucking to continue to lead all domestic freight transportation modes in freight tonnage moved in the United States by
the year 2016. This includes a significant share of all agricultural traffic.
As trucks move more and more agriculture commodities, it will be essential to reform size and weight requirements on our federal highways to meet just-in-time shipper and processor requirements, reduce congestion, reduce fossil fuel energy use, and help in making our environment cleaner and safer.
Please contact Steve Jarvis at 301/838-9385 or at sjarvis@forestresources.org for more information.
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