"Maritime transport costs represent a high proportion of the imported value of agricultural products — 10% on average, which is a similar level of magnitude as agricultural tariffs. This study shows that a doubling in the cost of shipping is associated with a 42% drop in trade on average in agricultural goods overall. The tendency to source imports from countries with low transport costs is therefore strong. Trade in some products is particularly affected by changes in maritime transport costs, in particular cereals and oilseeds, which are shipped in bulk."


I think this speaks for itself really. It is a piece of information released by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). They seem t be quite reserved with their information, and the database this information is from is now unavailable to the public.


I think the issue is quite clear and telling of however easy it may seem to "just buy local goods", the issue is much larger than that. Maybe it is as simple as every person only buying local produce, but in reality, most people cannot or will not, and the circle of importing goods gets worsened.


Fionn