If you haven’t heard yet, “The Food Biz'' is our new podcast where you can take a bite out of the latest headlines, trends, and insights within the Food and Beverage Industry.  In our fourth episode, hosts Ryan Nelson and Kristyn Tarpey are joined by Jared Flinn, Co-Founder and Operating Partner at BulkLoads.com. Together they discuss challenges in the bulk trucking industry and where the market is headed. 

Jared starts by providing more context about Bulkloads, the largest online bulk freight-matching marketplace.  Then they quickly get down to business and jump into a discussion about how COVID-19 has impacted BulkLoads.  Jared explains that a lot of their ups and downs have been dictated more on export markets than COVID-19.  However, there have been supply chain disruptions due to COVID-19 and a shortage of truck drivers, which has impacted their business, but overall, their business has been almost unchanged by COVID. 

Ryan questions if this is the same for the industry as a whole, which leads to a further discussion on the trucker shortage.  Jared explains that some physical assets and trucks are sitting idle because there aren’t enough drivers to fill that role.  This has led companies to look into the feasibility of using autonomous vehicles to meet demand.  Jared also discusses the importance of innovation in the bulk trucking industry and how BulkLoads needs to continuously innovate and adopt new technologies to stay competitive.

The conversation transitions to the recent volatile commodity market prices and the speculation of inflation. Jared discusses how commodity prices impact the bulk trucking industry. He explains that when fuel prices go above $4 a gallon, it becomes more efficient to move commodities via rail or barge.

They wrap up the episode with a discussion on the food supply chain and all of the processes it takes to get food from the farm to your table.  You can listen to the entire episode now to learn more about where the bulk trucking market is going.  Don’t forget to subscribe to "The Food Biz" on Spotify or in the Apple Podcasts App! Reach out to us by email at news@barchart.com with any discussion topics, questions, comments, or overall feedback; Ryan and Kristyn would love to hear from you!