During the holiday season, the usually low-volume Pacific Northwest changes from one of the easiest regions to source truckload capacity to one of the most difficult.
From late November to around Christmas Eve, thousands of loads of Christmas trees from Oregon and Washington put a strain on the nation’s shipping capacity.
Spot rates for loads moving from Portland, Oregon, to Chicago reached as high $6,667 in early December, according to SONAR TRAC. Most Christmas tree loads are handled on short-term rate agreements due to their extremely seasonal nature.
As of Monday, spot rates for the Portland-to-Chicago lane was around $5,334.94.
Fresh-cut Christmas trees require special special shipping conditions, which can make transportation more complicated. They are mostly moved in dry vans sometimes packed with ice or in reefer trucks with temperature control.
Christmas trees are grown commercially on about 16,000 farms across the country, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Popular types of trees include fir, pine and spruce.
Oregon, North Carolina and Michigan produce the majority of fresh-cut Christmas trees shipped across the country. Other states producing Christmas trees include Washington, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Texas.
The National Christmas Tree Association said about 22 million real Christmas trees were sold in 2023. The median price for a tree last year was $75.
About $553 million worth of domestic trees were harvested and sold nationwide in 2022, according to the most recent USDA data.
Mexico is the top international destination for Christmas trees from the U.S. According to the country’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, up to 2 million Christmas trees are purchased annually in Mexico, with imports from the U.S. and Canada accounting for 60% of purchases annually.
Mexican authorities reported they have inspected more than half a million imported Christmas trees from the U.S. so far this holiday season at border crossings in Arizona, California and Texas.
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