Photos: A rail strike looms and impact on US economy could be broad

Pork products are seen at a grocery store in Roslyn, Pa. American consumers and nearly every industry will be affected if freight trains grind to a halt in December 2022. Any disruption in rail service could threaten the health of chickens and pigs, which depend on trains to deliver their feed, and contribute to higher meat prices.

Rail Strike Impact Explainer

FILE - Shoppers pick out items at a grocery store in Glenview, Ill., on Nov. 19, 2022. American consumers and nearly every industry will be affected if freight trains grind to a halt in December. It would take about a week for customers to notice shortages of things like cereal, peanut butter and beer at the grocery store, said Tom Madrecki, vice president of supply chain for the Consumer Brands Association. About 30% of all packaged food in the U.S. is moved by rail, he said.

Rail Strike Impact Explainer

FILE - Ethanol train cars wait outside the Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy plant, an ethanol producer, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on April 21, 2020. American consumers and nearly every industry will be affected if freight trains grind to a halt in December 2022. Chemical manufacturers and refineries will be some of the first businesses affected, because railroads will stop shipping hazardous chemicals about a week before the strike deadline to ensure that no tank cars filled with dangerous liquids wind up stranded.

Rail Strike Impact Explainer

FILE - A worker boards a locomotive at a BNSF rail yard on Sept. 14, 2022, in Kansas City, Kan. American consumers and nearly every industry will be affected if freight trains grind to a halt in December. One of the biggest rail unions rejected its deal Monday, Nov. 21, 2022, joining three others that have failed to approve contracts over concerns about demanding schedules and the lack of paid sick time. That raises the risk of a strike, which could start as soon as Dec. 5 and cost the economy up to $2 billion a day.