The port of Bahia Blanca in Argentina resumed normal operations on 5 August after five days of disruptions and road blocks, Reuters reported.
The protest could resume if the truckers’ demands for higher wages were not met, the news agency added.
The drivers were also demanding the suspension of a law regulating the weight and power of lorries transporting goods, according to an AgriCensus report on 3 August.
In a bid to improve road safety on the routes, current legislation had set a timeline to phase out low power trucks.
Gustavo Idigoras, head of the country’s grain export chamber CIARA-CEC, told AgriCensus that there had been some violence among some of the strikers, but authorities had been slow to respond.
Bahia Blanca port, in the southern part of Buenos Aires province, is used by major grain and oilseed exporters such as Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Cargill and Louis Dreyfus, according to Reuters. The country is a leading exporter of soyabean oil and meal, as well as a top corn supplier.
The protests had come at a delicate time as logistics problems at Argentina’s main grains hub of Rosario, Santa Fe province, had increased Bahia Blanca traffic, Reuters wrote.
Exporters were also facing transportation problems caused by low water levels along the key waterways in the region, particularly the Paraná River, AgriCensus said.
