Why SeaPort Manatee is setting records and handling nearly as much cargo as Tampa
Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers made a run on toilet paper, hand sanitizer and masks.
After Hurricane Ian, some Bradenton area gas stations ran out of fuel.
The one constant in supplying these critical consumer needs — and more — was SeaPort Manatee, which remained open, day after day during the emergencies.
Due to its location 10 miles north of Palmetto, near the Hillsborough County line, SeaPort Manatee is out of sight and out of mind for most Bradenton area residents.
Yet, SeaPort Manatee, which marked its 50th anniversary in 2020, has been quietly setting one record after another for cargo handled.
In fiscal 2022, SeaPort Manatee handled 177,108 cargo containers, nearly as many as Port Tampa Bay, which handled 178,637.
SeaPort Manatee has been steadily closing that gap since 2012, when Carlos Buqueras was named president and CE0.
During that time, both ports have been growing their business. As recently as fiscal 2019, Port Tampa Bay handled 105,663 cargo containers, while SeaPort Manatee handled 57,255.
Pineapples, bananas and avocados
That bunch of bananas, the pineapples and Hass avocados that can be found in many Bradenton area kitchens very likely arrived through SeaPort Manatee.
Del Monte Fresh Produce Company set up shop at SeaPort Manatee in 1988.
Del Monte imports, primarily from Costa Rica, make their way onto grocery shelves around the Southeast and as far as Canada.
“SeaPort Manatee is a young port,” Denise Tuck, Del Monte’s local port manager said of the company’s local operation.
“The opportunity was there for us to grow. We’re comfortable here. We are happy to be at SeaPort Manatee,” Tuck said.
On average, Del Monte receives 300 container shipments a week with each container delivering 20 pallets of fruit, roughly 56 to 72 boxes.
About 55% of the fruit imported by Del Monte is bananas and about 45% is pineapples. From time to time, Del Monte also ships plantains, avocados and water melons.
Appliances, aggregates and more
World Direct Shipping, based in Palmetto, started doing business at SeaPort Manatee in 2014 when it had a single vessel.
The owners of the company, the Blazer family of Atlanta, also owners of the huge Dekalb Farmers Market in Decatur, Georgia, went into shipping to get the produce their customers wanted.
WDS initially made weekly voyages to the Mexican port of Coatzacoalcos, to import agricultural goods. Later, it added two more vessels and extended its service to Tuxpan, the closest commercial port to Mexico City, as well as Tampico and Progreso.
World Direct Shipping chose SeaPort Manatee because it’s the closest port to the Mexican ports. In the fruit and vegetable market, every hour is critical in getting the product to market as quickly as possible.
Carlos Diaz, director of WDS, said his company now also imports appliances (washers, dryers and air conditioners), minerals such as phosphates and manganese, refined sugar, toothpaste and shampoo.
“Our business has doubled since 2020. We have a long, progressive relationship with SeaPort Manatee,” Diaz said.
Rapid growth
This week at Berth Nine, one of 10 working berths at SeaPort Manatee, the Magda P, a bulk ship, was unloading phosphate rock, and the Saga Faith, a forest products carrier, was unloading wood products.
Buqueras, reflecting on the COVID pandemic and toilet paper shortage, said imports of wood pulp at SeaPort Manatee helped American manufacturers keep up with the demand during a time of hoarding.
“We kept it coming month after month,” he said.
“Our container traffic has grown significantly. We went from handling almost none to nearly as much as Port of Tampa in the past year. We did it with one-third of the capital investment as Port of Tampa,” he said.
Petroleum product imports, which have grown from 402,799 tons in 2013 to 1,493,737 tons in 2022, supply gas stations from southern Hillsborough County to the Fort Myers area.
Tanker truck drivers can enter the port 24 hours a day to pick up fuel and deliver it to stations around Southwest Florida. There are now about 200 tanker trucks that can enter empty through port security and leave with a full load.
The port also serves as a critical link in keeping fruits and vegetables on store shelves, Buqueras said. In 2013, the port received 336,096 tons of containerized fruits and vegetables. In 2022, its received 422,641 tons.
“Ninety eight percent of everything you buy moves through a port. We touch consumers every day,” he said.
In fiscal 2022, SeaPort Manatee saw:
▪ 11,030,762 million tons of cargo, a 5.5% increase from a year earlier
▪ 404.6 million gallons of petroleum products, distributed to 11 Florida counties, an 18.6% increase
▪ 125 million gallons of fruit juice, a 14% increase
▪ 420,582 tons of containerized fruits and vegetables — 1.2 billion bananas, 39 million pineapples and 38 million avocados — a 25% increase
▪ 79,802 tons of aluminum, a 17% increase
▪ 472,970 tons of forest products, a 41% increase
The future
In fiscal 2022, the port had an estimated $5.1 billion economic impact and required no support from Manatee County property owners.
About 2,000 people work at the port daily. About 80 of them are SeaPort Manatee staff.
The future of SeaPort Manatee holds the promise of more growth.
Recently, the Oceanus Line began service, providing an all-water link between seaports in Mexico and Colombia and Port Freeport on the Texas Gulf Coast.
Oceanus Line’s Florida Gulf Express initially operates every two weeks, counterclockwise from Cartagena, Colombia, to SeaPort Manatee, then across the Gulf of Mexico to Port Freeport, before heading south to Veracruz, Mexico, and returning to Cartagena.
On the inaugural voyage, the vessel called at the Mexican port of Tuxpan on its way north from Colombia.
The Oceanus will be bringing in fruits and vegetables, household goods and general cargo, Buqueras said.
SeaPort Manatee’s biggest challenge for the future is expansion, he said.
As the port grows, there will be more need for container handling, warehousing and distribution facilities, including a rail terminal to ship products to the Northeast and Midwest, Buqueras said.
In 2019, port officials said it could cost as much as $127 million over five years, and $500 million over the next 20 years, to build the facilities to keep up with growth at SeaPort Manatee.
For total tonnage handled, SeaPort Manatee now ranks only behind Tampa Bay, Everglades and Jaxport among Florida’s 16 ports, according to the Florida Seaport Transportation and Economic Development Council.
For more information, visit seaportmanatee.com/.
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This story was originally published April 13, 2023 at 5:50 AM.
