Vancouver port traffic hits record high on Asian demand for grain and potash

The Vancouver port saw record cargo numbers in 2018, driven by hunger for grain and potash overseas and a thirst for consumer products in Canada. Cargo volume grew to a record 147 million tonnes last year, up 3.5 per cent from 2017, according to the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority."The growing middle class in China is starting to change consumption patterns," said Robin Silvester, who heads the port authority.The last few years have seen thousands of tonnes of soybean and cereals shipped to Asia for use in animal feed amidst a growing appetite for pork and beef, he said."But what's interesting this year is the more specialty crops, like barley — and a lot of that's going to China," Silvester said in an interview. "One of the things seems to be, just like here, growing craft brew production in China — smaller volume, higher quality beers."Barley volumes grew more than 54 per cent year over year in 2018 to 1.8 million tonnes, helped along by a bumper crop, according to the port authority.