Did port slowdowns bust state’s hay export boom?

By Sylvia Kantor, College of Agricultural, Human & Natural Resource Sciences

JimBaird-80SEATTLE – Washington grows and exports some of the best hay in the world, but the market has taken a significant hit from the recent dockworker slowdown that crippled West Coast ports. 

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Jim Baird farms hay and other crops on his family farm near Ephrata, Wash. (Photo by Jim McGreevy)

Brokers and growers worry about the impact on the upcoming season and beyond because of the timing of hay contracts and the loss of customer trust overseas. They say exporters who couldn’t deliver on their contracts last fall will have to work extra hard to wrestle market share from foreign competitors.

Read the complete article in Crosscut.com news at http://crosscut.com/
2015/03/hay/