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PORT OF SEATTLE MEMORANDUM COMMISSION AGENDA Item No. 7e STAFF BRIEFING Date of Meeting Date of Meeting May 24, 2011 DATE: May 13, 2011 TO: Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer FROM: Mark Wen, Inland Cargo & Business Development Manager SUBJECT: Central / Eastern Washington Trip Report BACKGROUND: Inland cargo, especially agricultural export cargo, accounts for more than 50% of Port of Seattle's total export volume. Almost $15 billion in food and agricultural products were exported through Washington state ports in 2008, the third largest total in the U.S. Washington state ranks first in the nation for production of 10 commodities, including apples, sweet cherries, pears, red raspberries, hay and hops, with a total of some 300 commodities produced commercially overall. The agricultural industry employs more than 160,000 people in Washington State. It is critical for Port of Seattle to connect with inland exporters, understand their concerns, and work together with them to ensure public policies and funding (federal and state) are in place to support our export-focused economy and create jobs for Washington state. In 2009, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Yoshitani and Commissioner Bryant visited key exporting communities in central and eastern Washington to meet with the Port's customers, trade groups and inland exporters. We had great feedback from this trip. On April 26 28, 2011, the CEO and Commissioners Bryant and Albro arranged a similar trip to Wenatchee, Spokane, Walla Walla, the Tri-Cities and Yakima. The Port Commission also held a joint meeting with the Port of Moses Lake Commission and toured several Foreign Trade Zone operations at the Port of Moses Lake. BRIEFING OUTLINE: On the trip, the Port hosted four Export Roundtables attended by more than 100 leading exporters, regional leaders, economic development councils, transportation associations, agriculture commissions, inland ports, trade councils, tourism industry representatives and Port customers. We also visited the Quincy Intermodal Rail Yard, TreeTop (a leading producer of fruit juices and products in Selah) and Key Technology (a leading designer and manufacturer of food and other processing equipment headquartered in Walla Walla). COMMISSION AGENDA T. Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer May 13, 2011 Page 2 of 2 Our key messages were: Competitive ports and an efficient rail and road transportation system are critical for Washington agriculture export economy and jobs. We must work together to ensure public policy and funding (federal and state) are in place to support our export-focused economy and create and sustain jobs in Washington state. OTHER DOCUMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS BRIEFING: PowerPoint presentation.
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