Jefferson City, Mo.-Four barges carrying 6,000 tons of phosphate made their way up the Missouri River last week from Louisiana as a sign that better times are ahead for cargo shipping in these parts. Kevin Holcer, wholesale fertilizer manager for AGRIServices of Brunswick, said the barges were due late on March 18 after being slowed because of a lot of drift on the river. No matter, since it still means higher waters have returned and a newly energized shipping year is underway after eight years of drought and low water that almost wiped out cargo traffic. AGRIServices is in its fifth year of running tows on the Missouri River, and got into the barge business after other providers moved off the river due to low water levels (GM June 6, 2005). The state, along with agriculture and other shipping partners, is initiating a market and commodity analysis to find ways to get more traffic on the river. The study will look into traditional river products, examine the potential for containerized shipping, and discover ways to get more consistent operations even when water levels are low. Dr. Ernie Perry, freight development administrator at Missouri Dept. of Transportation, said “Our goal is to increase the freight moved across these docks and onto the Missouri River, increase the connections to other transportation modes, and provide economic development opportunities along the river corridor.”
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain