Brazil-US Trade Corridor 2026: Record Volumes, New Challenges

The Surge No One Can Ignore

If you are a Brazilian freight forwarder moving cargo into the United States, you already feel it: the lanes are busier, the rates are volatile, and the operational complexity at US ports has reached levels not seen since the post-pandemic congestion crisis of 2021-2022. The difference now is that the volumes are not driven by supply chain disruption. They are driven by genuine, structural demand growth.

Bilateral trade between Brazil and the United States reached an estimated $92 billion in 2025, and early indicators suggest 2026 could surpass the $100 billion threshold for the first time in history. For freight forwarders operating between these two economies, this is both a massive opportunity and a serious operational challenge. Understanding where the volumes are flowing, which ports are absorbing the growth, and what regulatory shifts are reshaping the landscape is no longer optional. It is a survival requirement.

Key Commodities Driving Record Volumes

Brazil remains the world's largest exporter of coffee, soybeans, orange juice concentrate, and sugar. In 2026, these agricultural powerhouses continue to dominate southbound-to-northbound ocean lanes. Green coffee imports into the US from Brazil are projected to exceed 28 million 60-kilogram bags this year, a 6% increase over 2025, fueled by specialty coffee demand and the continued expansion of ready-to-drink coffee products in the American market.

But the story goes well beyond agriculture. Brazilian steel exports to the US have rebounded significantly following the renegotiation of tariff rate quotas in late 2025. Semifinished steel slabs from producers in Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo are flowing into Gulf Coast ports at volumes not seen since 2018. Eucalyptus pulp, a critical input for American paper and packaging manufacturers, has seen a 12% year-over-year volume increase as US companies diversify away from Canadian and Scandinavian suppliers.

Frozen and chilled beef continues its upward trajectory. The USDA expanded the list of approved Brazilian meatpacking plants eligible to export to the US in Q4 2025, adding 14 new facilities. This regulatory expansion has opened the floodgates for Brazilian protein exports, with frozen beef container volumes up an estimated 18% in the first months of 2026. Orange juice concentrate, manufactured goods including auto parts, aircraft components from Embraer's supply chain, and granite and marble from Bahia and Espirito Santo round out a remarkably diverse export mix.

Top US Ports for Brazilian Imports

The geographic distribution of Brazilian imports across US ports tells a story of shifting trade patterns and infrastructure investment. Understanding these flows is essential for any forwarder trying to optimize transit times, reduce drayage costs, and avoid congestion-related delays.

The Port of Savannah has emerged as the single largest gateway for Brazilian containerized cargo on the East Coast. The Georgia Ports Authority's aggressive infrastructure expansion, including the completion of additional berths at Garden City Terminal and the new Mason Mega Rail facility, has made Savannah the preferred first call for several major ocean carriers on the Brazil-US East Coast rotation. Container volumes from Brazilian origins through Savannah grew 14% in 2025, and the pace appears to be accelerating in early 2026.

The Port of New York and New Jersey remains the dominant gateway for Brazilian coffee imports, handling an estimated 40% of all green coffee entering the United States. Its proximity to major roasting operations in the Northeast and access to a massive consumer base of 50 million people within a 200-mile radius make it irreplaceable for time-sensitive agricultural commodities. However, chronic congestion at the port's marine terminals and limited chassis availability continue to frustrate forwarders and importers alike.

Houston and the broader Texas Gulf Coast ports handle the bulk of Brazilian steel and industrial commodity imports. The Houston Ship Channel's deep-water berths and direct rail connections to Midwest manufacturing centers make it the natural choice for heavy break-bulk and project cargo. Port Miami and Port Everglades continue to dominate the South Florida gateway for Brazilian perishables, consumer goods, and LCL consolidation. On the West Coast, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach serve as transshipment hubs for Brazilian cargo destined for Pacific Rim redistribution, though direct Brazil-to-West Coast services remain limited compared to East Coast and Gulf options.

Infrastructure Challenges Threatening the Growth

Record trade volumes are only good news if the infrastructure can handle them. In 2026, the US logistics network is showing significant strain in three critical areas: port congestion, chassis availability, and warehouse capacity.

Port congestion has returned, though in a more localized pattern than the nationwide crisis of 2021. Savannah, despite its expansion, is experiencing gate turn times averaging 75 minutes during peak periods, up from 52 minutes a year ago. NY/NJ continues to grapple with vessel bunching, where multiple ships arrive within the same window due to weather delays or schedule slides, overwhelming terminal capacity for days at a time. For Brazilian forwarders, this means that even perfectly executed ocean bookings can result in 3- to 5-day delays at the port of discharge before containers are available for pickup.

The chassis shortage, a perennial issue in US intermodal logistics, has intensified. The national chassis fleet has not grown at the same rate as container import volumes, creating an imbalance that drives up street dwell times, increases per-diem charges, and forces drayage carriers to make multiple trips to chassis pools before finding available equipment. In the Southeast, the chassis-to-container ratio has dropped below 1.2:1, well below the 1.5:1 ratio considered operationally healthy.

Warehouse capacity constraints represent the third major bottleneck. Industrial vacancy rates in key logistics corridors near Savannah, Houston, and the New Jersey Meadowlands have fallen below 3%, pushing up rental rates and making it increasingly difficult for importers to secure short-term transload and storage space. For Brazilian commodities that require USDA-inspected cold storage or FDA-compliant warehousing, the options are even more limited.

Navigating the Regulatory Landscape

The regulatory environment for Brazilian imports into the US has grown more complex in 2026. Several developments demand close attention from freight forwarders and their customs broker partners.

On the tariff front, the US Trade Representative completed its review of Section 301 tariffs in late 2025, resulting in a recalibration of duty rates on several Brazilian product categories. While most agricultural commodities remain duty-free or subject to low MFN rates under existing trade agreements, certain manufactured goods, particularly steel products and select industrial inputs, face adjusted tariff rate quotas that require careful classification and quota monitoring. Forwarders who do not track their clients' quota utilization in real time risk costly duty assessments and shipment delays at the border.

FDA requirements for Brazilian food exports have tightened. The implementation of the FDA's updated Prior Notice system, now requiring electronic submission at least 15 days before vessel arrival for certain food categories, has caught several Brazilian exporters off guard. Incomplete or inaccurate prior notice filings result in automatic holds at the port, generating demurrage charges and jeopardizing the cold chain for perishable products. USDA phytosanitary requirements for fresh produce and wood packaging materials also continue to evolve, with new treatment certification protocols taking effect in March 2026.

CBP's Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) system has introduced new data validation rules for Brazilian shipments, particularly around country of origin declarations and manufacturer identification. These changes are part of a broader enforcement push targeting misdeclaration and transshipment fraud. Forwarders need to ensure their documentation workflows capture all required data points before the cargo is tendered to the ocean carrier.

Opportunities for Brazilian Freight Forwarders

Despite the challenges, the current market conditions present a compelling growth opportunity for Brazilian freight forwarders willing to invest in their US-bound service capabilities. The sheer volume of cargo moving northbound means that even incremental gains in market share translate to significant revenue growth.

The forwarders gaining ground in 2026 share several common traits. First, they offer true door-to-door service visibility, giving their importer clients real-time tracking from the Brazilian port of loading through final delivery at the US destination warehouse. Second, they have established reliable drayage and domestic distribution networks at the key US gateway ports rather than relying on ad-hoc spot market arrangements that collapse during peak periods. Third, they invest in compliance expertise, ensuring that customs entries, FDA filings, and USDA certifications are prepared correctly the first time, eliminating costly resubmissions and examination delays.

Perhaps most importantly, the winning forwarders are those who recognize that controlling the US-side operation is no longer optional. When your client's 40-foot container arrives in Savannah or Houston, the quality of the last-mile experience, from drayage pickup to customs clearance to final delivery, determines whether that client stays with you or moves to a competitor. Forwarders who leave this critical leg to chance, or who depend on loosely managed US agents with divided loyalties, are losing business to competitors who have locked down the destination side.

The Strategic Advantage of a Dedicated US Operations Partner

One model gaining significant traction among forward-thinking Brazilian forwarders is the white-label US operations partnership. Rather than establishing their own US entity, hiring local staff, and managing the regulatory complexity of operating as a licensed freight forwarder in the United States, these companies partner with a dedicated US operations team that works exclusively under their brand.

This approach solves several problems simultaneously. It provides immediate operational capacity at all major US gateway ports without the capital expenditure of establishing a physical presence. It delivers compliance expertise from professionals who navigate FDA, USDA, and CBP requirements every day. It ensures that the importer client receives seamless, branded service from origin to destination, never knowing that a separate operations partner is executing the US leg. And critically, it eliminates the conflict of interest that plagues traditional agent relationships, where the US-side agent may be tempted to build direct relationships with the importer and cut the Brazilian forwarder out of future business.

As trade volumes between Brazil and the US continue to climb, the forwarders who will capture the lion's share of this growth are those who can guarantee reliable, transparent, and compliant operations on both ends of the corridor. The infrastructure challenges, regulatory complexity, and competitive pressures of 2026 make this a necessity, not a luxury.

Looking Ahead: What the Rest of 2026 Holds

The fundamentals driving Brazil-US trade growth remain robust. American consumer demand for Brazilian agricultural products shows no signs of slowing. Industrial diversification strategies are pushing US manufacturers toward Brazilian raw material suppliers. And new product categories, from sustainable aviation fuel feedstocks to critical minerals used in battery manufacturing, are beginning to create entirely new trade lanes between the two countries.

For Brazilian freight forwarders, the message is clear: the volume is there, the demand is there, but so is the competition. The forwarders who invest in US-side operational excellence, regulatory compliance, and strategic partnerships will be the ones writing the success stories of 2026. Those who continue to operate with fragmented agent networks, reactive compliance approaches, and limited visibility into the destination operation will find themselves steadily losing ground.

The Brazil-US trade corridor is entering its most dynamic phase in decades. The only question is whether your operation is built to capture the opportunity.