News / Cross-Channel sailboat service set for new year launch

Photo: Grain de Sail

France’s Grain de Sail is poised to launch a cross-Channel sail-powered cargo shipping line early next year.

The Brittany-based group, whose activities span chocolate and coffee processing, maritime transport, import and export services and freight forwarding, will offer capacity of 26 pallets on the 24-metre Grain de Sail (GDS) 1 sailboat between St-Malo and Southampton, with journey times of between one and two days.

It plans to in initially operate one round trip a week, and increase frequencies by adding more ships, Grain de Sail marketing director Stefan Gallard told The Loadstar.

“We’ll be carrying French goods, providing an LCL service by the pallet, and will be loading UK products on the return trip to France. With our pure sailing vessel we can exceed 90% carbon reduction. Future routes within UK and Ireland, as well as within Europe, are also under study.

“We can transport all kinds of goods on pallets that do not require refrigeration. We have the capability to manage temperature (between 15°C and 17°C) and humidity in the hold. So we can accommodate any dry, non-perishable products.”

One advantage Gain de Sail offers, he added, is that the groupage and deconsolidation of goods is carried out directly in the sailboat’s hold.

“We do business with a broad range of companies, including those in wines and spirits, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, fashion and luxury brands (perfumes, textiles and leather goods). Our aim is to offer an alternative to the traditional supply chain. In certain segments, low-carbon transport by cargo sailboat can be as fast as air or even CFS/CFS road transport,” he claimed.

“Admittedly, 26 pallets is relatively little, in terms of capacity per crossing, but it’s a start. We have a cargo sailing vessel at our disposal, the shortsea routes make sense and we have clear advantages. For example, for very high value-added products that cannot use traditional maritime groupage for security reasons, shippers have no option but to use air freight.”

Grain de Sail has been operating a transatlantic service with GDS 1, but next month will introduce the much larger, 238-pallet-capacity GDS II on the route which links St-Malo and New York’s Port Elizabeth, New Jersey terminal. Return trips to France include supplies of coffee and cocoa beans from the Dominican Republic for Grain de Sail’s production facilities.

Launched in 2020, the service has been operating twice-yearly, but there are plans to increase this to six times year.