About the Suez Canal....

6 Comments

by: wade norris

You may have heard about the Suez Canal being blocked by the Evergreen super cargo container.
But you might not know this:

Toilet Paper Is Next Likely Victim of World’s Container Crisis
By Fabiana Batista
March 24, 2021, 3:15 PM MDT Updated on March 24, 2021, 10:00 PM MDT

The world really doesn’t need more toilet paper problems. But unfortunately the biggest producer of wood pulp — the raw material for products including bath tissue — is warning that the global crunch in shipping containers could start creating supply snags.

Suzano SA primarily ships its pulp in cargo vessels known as break bulk. With demand surging for ships that carry ribbed steel containers, the squeeze is starting to spill over to break bulk and threatens to delay the company’s shipments, Chief Executive Officer Walter Schalka said in an interview.

For visual size comparison:

6 thoughts on “About the Suez Canal….”

JohnInDenver says:

March 27, 2021 at 8:47 am

Fortune magazine assesses the risks.

It's possible that U.S. consumers will feel some impact if shipping is disrupted for more than a few days. Finished products from Asia to the United States go over the Pacific. However, some components for products that are assembled in Europe and shipped to the U.S. could be delayed by the canal closure.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said the canal blockage likely won’t have much impact on the U.S. or global economies unless it drags on for weeks or months.

It may push up oil prices, “but we are not talking dollars on the barrel, we are talking pennies on the barrel,” Zandi said.

The US and Canada have plenty of wood pulp.

Log in to Reply
MichaelBowman says:

March 27, 2021 at 9:55 am

Turns out we have non-wood pulp alternatives 😎

Hemp Toilet Paper: What You Need To Know Before You Go

Log in to Reply
1. kwtree says:
  
  March 27, 2021 at 11:30 am
  
  And bamboo, although that might also be delayed because of the Suez blockage.
  
  Log in to Reply
MichaelBowman says:

March 27, 2021 at 10:19 am

Just sayin…

Log in to Reply
wade norris says:

March 27, 2021 at 1:37 pm

@michaelbowman – Hilarious!

Log in to Reply
JohnInDenver says:

March 27, 2021 at 9:09 pm

Update as of Saturday night (our time) … stern has moved a bit, and the rudder is now free.

Dredge on site is chewing away sand by the bow, and may make enough of a difference in the next day or two.

There's a couple of high tides coming … they may make enough difference to float the boat.

Log in to Reply