Dockworkers strike threatens to reignite food inflation, spark holiday shortages for US consumers

A dockworkers strike that has idled more than a dozen of the largest ports across the Eastern US threatens to reignite food inflation in the coming weeks, and could create a shortage of toys and Christmas trees just as the holiday season gets underway.Some 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association walked off the job on Tuesday – picketing at ports stretching from Maine to Texas as workers and management remain at loggerheads over issues like wages and the threat of automation.The most immediate impact may be felt at supermarkets, according to experts.“From a consumer standpoint if the strike goes a couple of weeks, you’ll start to see impacts on the grocery side,” Larry Gross, a supply chain analyst and president of Gross Transportation Consulting, told The Post.Nearly four in five of dates, figs, pineapples and avocados that are imported to the US come into the East Coast ports that are on strike, according to Michigan State University associated professor Jason Miller, an expert in supply chain management.Three out of four bananas imported to the US and 81% of the coffee brought into the country is processed through East Coast ports as well.A lengthy labor stoppage threatens to disrupt the holiday shopping season for millions of Americans, who could see shortages of toys, cars, furniture, alcohol and pharmaceuticals.The strike threatens to impact numerous industries and disrupt global supply chains on a scale similar to that which was seen during the coronavirus pandemic.“No industry is completely safe from the impact of an ILA work stoppage, but some would be hit harder than others,” Ryan Petersen, CEO and founder of US freight forwarder Flexport, told ShippingWatch.While a one-week strike would cause a backlog of up to six weeks, a longer strike could have more dire effects, according to Petersen.“In a worst-case scenario — if a strike goes on for weeks — the result would be catastrophic, causing supply chain disruptions ...