Perishables shippers should “keep their forwarder sharp” on non-air freight options, as innovation in logistics makes alternative modes increasingly competitive.
And the CEO and founder of perishable forwarder Shypple Fresh, Jarell Habets, told The Loadstar he expected “a much larger share of perishables to move by ocean in the near future”.
He noted that shippers were increasingly looking to ocean transport in favour of air for “cost and sustainability reasons” – a move already made by retailers such as Lidl.
“It’s significantly cheaper and far better in terms of CO2 emissions. Ultimately, consumers are paying for that,” he said.
This shift, he added, was “especially relevant for the flower industry”, adding: “A lot of Dutch flower growers moved operations to Kenya and Ethiopia due to labour costs.
“Their flowers are flown to Amsterdam for distribution across Europe, and sometimes even onward to the US or the Middle East. But now, some growers are experimenting with roses treated with chemicals to preserve them for up to 30 days. This allows transportation by sea, even around the Cape of Good Hope.”
Mr Habets predicted that if this advanced further alongside similar innovations, ocean carriers “could take a much bigger share of the perishables market”.
He urged: “The advice to shippers that heavily rely on air freight is stay informed about new technologies and keep their forwarder proactive in exploring alternatives.”
However, Mr Habets added that for this modal shift to be successful, ocean carriers needed “to do their bit”, with better schedule reliability and data transparency. He added: “Arrival times are more accurate if you get them directly from the terminal, which doesn’t make sense.
“If a carrier is sailing its own vessel, it should know its discharge slot and be able to provide real-time updates on container movements,” he told The Loadstar.
“You should know and should be able to tell us exactly what container number you have already put into the port. This is especially critical for perishables, where every 10 minutes a container is not offloaded counts”
He added that having “consistent schedules” was another major factor in attracting perishables traffic.
“One of the biggest frustrations for perishables shippers is sudden changes to the schedule. For example, a carrier might promise a direct sailing from Caucedo to Rotterdam in 11 days, but then add a stop in Antwerp or Felixstowe. That delays cargo arriving in Rotterdam by days, leaving shippers angry and scrambling.” Mr Habets explained.
According to him, besides shifting schedules to avoid disruption, carriers will sometimes do this for economic reasons.
“Sometimes, a carrier will prioritise a big new customer in another market and change the route to accommodate them. For perishables, this can be disastrous, especially since shifting to another carrier mid-season is nearly impossible, with capacity so tight.”
Mr Habets concluded: “For perishables, consistency is everything. Stick to your schedule, deliver on what you’ve promised. It’s not rocket science. That’s where carriers can truly set themselves apart.”
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