It’s 2023 and Canada’s busiest port has a tough time loading grain in wet weather. That’s an issue when Vancouver sees an average of 160-plus days per year with measurable rainfall. It’s not that it cannot be done – it is 2023 after all. Protocols and processes are in place that allow grain to be loaded during inclement weather. So why isn’t it happening more frequently?

Ultimately, individual grain companies make operational and commercial decisions as to when and how to load grain ships. Those companies also make the decision to invest, or not invest, in infrastructure and technology that would overcome rain issues (e.g. a roof).

The solutions are there – why aren’t they being used more frequently?

An arbitration ruling by the Canada Industrial Relations Board in February 2018 halted the practice of loading grain via tarping of cargo holds. Grain loading via feeder holes (purpose-built openings in ship hatch covers for grain loading spouts) was also temporarily halted until additional safety measures could be implemented. Since the new safety protocols were put in place, loading through feeder holes has been limited. Industry observers have noted the additional time and effort associated with the new protocols means that, in many circumstances, a grain company will elect not to load when it rains.

Alternatives to loading grain through feeder holes are out there and being used today. For example, the Temco grain export terminal at Kalama WA has invested in a cantilevered rain roof roughly nine-tenths of an acre in size.

Photo Credit: Port of Kalama

Photo Credit: Port of Kalama

Real impacts to farmers

This issue hits farmers’ bottom line and reduces Canada’s overall grain supply chain capacity. For example, CN had upwards of 20 grain trains parked along the route to Vancouver in October last year due to terminal productivity issues related to persistent rainfall. In the four weeks preceding the inclement weather, weekly shipments of western Canadian grain on CN averaged 760,000 metric tonnes. Between grain shipment weeks 13-15, total grain shipments on CN declined by over 60% to an average of 289,000 metric tonnes - the equivalent of 275,000 acres of Western Canadian grain production.

Those delays spread through the rest of the supply chain. By grain shipment week 15, the grain supply chain was plugging up. With limited space available at export terminals, the pace of farmer grain deliveries had fallen by over 30%, or over 400,000 metric tonnes compared to the average for grain shipment weeks 9-12.

Ultimately, the end-to-end grain supply chain suffers if port terminal productivity declines. If port terminal space isn’t available to unload grain from railcars, then loaded grain trains can’t be moved forward. Every train held back delays the return of empty hopper cars to the Prairies. Reduced hopper car availability impacts CN spotting program for the following week and the ability of grain elevators to take delivery of farmers’ grain.

Improved end-to-end grain supply chain reporting is needed

Unfortunately, grain industry reporting on the decline in hopper car order fulfillment during this period failed to look at the source of the problem. Current measurement systems focus on the railway when any decline in order fulfillment is recorded. That misses the big picture of what is happening in our grain supply chains. Farmers across western Canada are increasingly concerned about this one-sided approach.

The opportunity

If Canada hopes to improve how supply chains work, we need to change how we measure and report on data. We need a balanced, fact-based approach that considers all parts of the supply chain. Improved measurement will help us understand what is going on when problems arise and will help us collectively work to fix those problems. Make loading in the rain an issue of the past. Ask Canada’s new Office of Supply Chain Management to put those systems in place.