The containerization of commodities

The containerization of commodities involves the development and expansion of a niche market that can fluctuate according to the price of the respective commodities, the nature and extent of the demand and container shipping rates. [...] The Containerization of Commodities: Integrating Inland Ports with Gateways and Corridors in Western Canada 3 Acknowledgments The author would like to acknowledge the financial and administrative support of the Van Horne Institute that has made the realization of this report possible. [...] The Western Canadian System Within the North American system of freight distribution, Western Canada plays a unique role as a point of transit between the Pacific gateways and major markets of the The Containerization of Commodities: Integrating Inland Ports with Gateways and Corridors in Western Canada 11 heartland of North American and as a commodity exporter of wood, food and energy products th [...] The cost structure of the transport chain will be an important determinant in the comparative advantages of respective routing options across North America, including the landbridge, the usage of the Suez Canal, or the all-water route through the Panama Canal (Figure 6). [...] For transpacific trade, the pattern for inbound traffic is straightforward and a function of shipping distance; the lowest among the sample being Vancouver and the highest being Montreal at the opposite end of the all-water route (compounded by a significant detour through the St.