The global increase in home baking and cooking during the pandemic is making 2020 one of the busiest years yet for the Port of Thunder Bay, and helping it set a record in the process. As of June 30, the port had handled 3.2 million metric tonnes (MMT) of grain, which is 35 per cent higher than the five-year average of 2.4 MMT, said Tim Heney, the chief executive officer of the Thunder Bay Port Authority (TBPA). "We've had a very strong year so far," he said, explaining that as COVID-19 spread around the world, many countries stopped exporting wheat. "It's quite a remarkable feat," said Heney, explaining that traditionally grain trains carry between 10 to 14,000 metric tons and this one carried 22,000, the amount that usually fits on an ocean-going vessel, or salty leaving Thunder Bay. "We've never seen anything of this size before, and certainly Thunder Bay is the only port in western Canada that you could accommodate something of that length, it's about two-and-a-half miles long, so it can't make it over the Rockies."

Source: The North Africa Journal July 08, 2020 12:17 UTC