the east coast advantage

Ever since lettuce growers in Salinas blew tons of ice over railcars of lettuce and shipped to the population centers on the East Coast, more and more of the produce Americans eat has been grown in the West.  With the growth of suburbs and exurbs, the prime farmland surrounding the Megalopolis in the Northeast has been swallowed by development and many growers have changed from wholesale suppliers to ag entertainers.  This has accelerated the stampede to the west.  Even in the height of the summer growing season, more veggies come from Canadian suppliers than local east coast growers, at least in the Northeast.   Now comes the era of $5.00 diesel fuel and a growing scarcity of trucks to haul western produce.  When freight from the West to New York is $10,000 and the value of the load is $5,000, there is a disaster scenario for a western grower if there is any problems with his produce.  He could easily be billed for the freight and receive nothing for his produce.  Railcars are not a cheap alternative, especially for highly perishable items.   Is it time for eastern growers from Florida to Prince Edward Island and Georgia to Wisconsin to step up production and can they?