PERISHABLES\\\ >> 12


p u r c h a s e d Cl o v er l eaf Cold Storage,


the nation’s fiſth-largest cold storage provider, thus gaining another 132 million sq. ſt., of refrigerated space in 22 facilities. At the same time, Savannah


officials have major plans of their own based on prospects for imported perishables. The port, already the national leader is frozen poultry exports, recently unveiled a project to strengthen cargo- handling capability and rail links. In doing so, officials cited the


trade potential made possible by their work with the federal pilot program that is clearing the way for Southeastern ports to handle cold-treated imported produce. With the aid of the most extensive on-terminal infrastructure of any U.S. port for handling refrigerated cargo, they say, chilled cargo owners are cutting five to seven days off deliveries to Southeastern markets.


Other opportunities


Some 3PL companies are also looking for opportunity in


smaller ports of entry


well positioned to benefit from produce imports from South and Central America. Baltimore-based MTC Logistics, for example, plans a new temperature-controlled facility at the port of Mobile. U.S. Cold Storage now has three refrigerated warehouses in Laredo to serve the fast- growing refrigerated/fresh import market from Mexico. Handling


more than


$5 billion in food and $3 billion in fruit each year, the Philadelphia port complex has a lot at stake in the heightened port competition. In response, officials are undertaking improvements designed to speed perishables flow, while also counting on the advantages of long-term ties and location. “The entire supply chain


-- from ocean carriers to refrigerated warehouses, freight forwarders to truckers -- is comfortable with the Philadelphia-Latin American perishables connection, and together we are growing that trade.


We have the cultural sensibilities, personal


Issue 5 2019 - FBJNA


connections and track record for them to have confidence in us,” said PhilaPort director of marketing Sean E. Mahoney. The port’s rapid access to the


nation’s richest markets is also key, he said. “Speed to market is essential. It can’t.


Fruit won’t wait. PhilaPort’s ability to


get the perishables containers off the ship, cleared, through the gate and on to market is a real advantage. Even as we improve our infrastructure with the goal of increasing our cargo volumes, we are planning and building with cargo velocity in mind.” Wilmington, Del., officials


similarly highlight the competitive advantages created by aspects of


their


existing infrastructure, such as off-dock temperature- controlled warehousing and fleets of refrigerated trucks, that may not be available at other ports. But they also acknowledge that it has faced ongoing capacity constraints during the


October-May


season for most types of produce imports. Bananas, the port’s leading product, are more of a year-round business. Along with the planned


new “refrigerated centric” container terminal, the capital expenditure program developed in response includes construction of a refrigerated warehouse with Rapid Cooling capability, complete racking of an existing 109,000 sq. ft. refrigerated warehouse and reconfiguring


the container


yard in a way that essentially doubles refrigerated container throughput. As East Coast Warehouse’s


Overley observed, however, ports’ efforts to improve their competitiveness in the perishables trade can only succeed along with the 3PL cold-chain specialists that operate there. “Yes, as noted previously, are competing


ports


aggressively to attract the perishable trade. Along with land-based services, ports have invested heavily in infrastructure to support larger ships and vessels in order to enable efficient distribution of product to consumers,” he said, while adding, “A robust presence by third party logistics providers is necessary to contribute to the success of those investments.”


Cool Chain gang declare war on waste


Cool Chain Association (CCA) members have shared temperature data from perishable consignments moving from Latin America to the Middle East as part of a scheme aimed at tackling food loss. Five pallets of berries and


avocados, were monitored from Guadalajara, in Mexico, to delivery in Kuwait, using loggers powered by secure near field communication (NFC) technology. Three NFC loggers were placed in an aircraſt lower deck pallet during the pilot scheme to


measure the temperature at the top, bottom, and in the middle of each consignment. Partners for the pilot


included Cargolux, Able Freight, AirFrance KLM, SmartCAE and Xtreme Technologies. Edwin Kalischnig, outgoing


secretary general of the CCA and chief executive of Xtreme Technologies, which provided the NFC loggers used in the pilot, said:


13 “Once we identify gaps,


we can look at where we can improve, and that is how change happens. Temperature movements,


including excursions, revealed by the pilot data will be analysed by Philippe Schuler, food waste campaigner with Too Good To Go, a free smartphone app which enables users to buy leſtover food at the end of the day from retailers.


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