Shipping

Earlier this month Israel and the UAE signed an historic agreement to normalise relations, marking a big development in economic collaboration and ending a ban on trade between the Gulf Arab state and Israel. Now, Danish shipping giant Maersk MAERSKb.CO said it will now transport ocean cargo between the…

Two men have been arrested after around a ton of cocaine concealed within a load of fruit was seized Dover. The discovery was made in the early hours of yesterday morning by specialist Border Force search teams. The cocaine, with a street value of approximately £100m has been found hidden in a shipment…

Dynamic Systems, Inc., a software developer specializing in Traceability and Inventory Systems for Fresh Food, has launched a new low cost version of their SIMBA system designed to give smaller produce growers, packers and shippers accessibility to those the features of higher level traceability and…

U.S. Customs & Border Protection Office of Field Operations at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility intercepted $2.36 million worth of alleged methamphetamine and heroin in a commercial shipment of fresh produce arriving from Mexico.

“This interception of dangerous drugs truly exemplifies the teamwork of our officers working at our cargo facility,” said Port Director Carlos Rodriguez, port of Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas. “CBP continues to analyze smuggling methods and utilize intelligence, experience and technology to keep our border communities safe and secure.”

On Sep. 16, 2020, at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge cargo facility, a CBP officer referred a tractor/trailer hauling a commercial shipment of fresh produce for further inspection. The secondary examination included the assistance of a (canine team) and subsequently officers discovered suspected narcotics hidden within the shipment. Officers removed 162 packages of alleged methamphetamine weighing 85.63 pounds and 30 packages of alleged heroin weighing 16.22 pounds. These drugs are valued at $1.7 million and $649,000, respectively.

CMA CGM has announced its intention to raise rates on the Asia to Europe trades from the 1 October.

Freight of all kinds (FAK) will be reviewed on or before the 14 October, said the line. The new rates are as follows:

Origin Range: From all Asian ports, including Japan, Southeast Asia and Bangladesh. Destination Range: To all Northern European ports, including UK and the full range from Portugal to Finland/Estonia. Cargo: Dry cargo, out of gauge cargo, paying empties and reefer cargo.

Now’s not the time to let our guard down when it comes to protecting our U.S. borders, urged National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) president A.V. Roth. Unfortunately, an estimated $630-million shortfall in Agriculture Quarantine Inspections (AQI) funding through the end of fiscal year 2021 has the pork industry very concerned about future funding for agricultural inspections at U.S ports of entry.

“Pork producers are already facing an unprecedented crisis as a result of the COVID-19 human health pandemic. An outbreak of ASF or other foreign animal diseases in the U.S. would be a devastating blow to hog farmers already teetering on the edge,” Roth said during a media teleconference on Thursday.

Both the Pacific and Asia to Europe rates have shown increases this week even after regulatory authorities in China, the US, Europe and South Korea have moved to monitor rates in both trades.

Asia to Europe rates were US$2,214/FEU today up from US$1,385/FEU on a year ago and by US$347/FEU on last week’s Freightos FBX11 index which recorded rates of US$I,867/FEU for 11 September.

Meanwhile, rates on the dynamic trades in the Pacific were also up as the FBX01 settled at US$3,805/FEU on 18 September an increase of US$22 on 17 September and US$104/FEU on 11 September levels. A year ago the FBX01 stood at US$1,140/FEU, less than one third of today’s levels.

Consultant Jon Monroe points to retail sales figures for August showing a year-on-year increases.

Following up on last week’s efforts by the Chinese Ministry of Transport to curb runaway spot rates, United States authorities have threatened to take carriers to court if they discover evidence of collusion in the container shipping industry’s highly profitable response to the global pandemic.

The US government’s Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) called a private meeting yesterday (16 September) to discuss what it described as “market trends in trade lanes serving the US and actions taken by both individual carriers and global alliances in response to Covid-19 and related impacts to the shipping industry”.

Spot rates between Asia and the US peaked last week at US$3,711/FEU on the west coast and US$4,496/FEU to the east coast, according to Freightos’ FBX01 Daily and FBX03 Daily Indexes.

The resulting surge in carrier profitability and a miserable peak season for shippers dealing with soaring transportation costs have surprised all leading analysts.

P&O Ferrymasters announced the launch of an advanced track and trace service for its container customers, making it the first major logistics business in Europe to introduce the technology. The service will allow customers to receive real-time updates on the precise location of their goods as they are…

The Chinese government has put the brakes on runaway spot rates between the US and Asia preventing box rates on the Transpacific trade lane surging through the US$5,000/FEU threshold.

According to the latest figures from Freightos Baltic Index, the unprecedented bull run that has boosted the bottom line of the world’s leading carriers since the end of June, has finally been halted by China’s Ministry of Transport, The pressure exerted by the MOT, principally on Chinese carriers, COSCO and OOCL, to drop general rate increases (GRI)s planned for yesterday, but ultimately axed, was also being felt by their non-Chinese rivals.

An 11 September meeting between the MOT and shipping lines appears to have brought about, at least a temporary halt in the spot rate feeding frenzy with COSCO/OOCL’s non-Chinese counterparts falling into line, dropping their proposed increases rather than risk incurring the ire of Chinese authorities.

Dennis Zhou of Zest Shipping Media, who broke the news of MOT’s intervention at the end of last week, said in a post on LinkedIn yesterday that “Maersk had reduced its proposed rate adjustment from US$500 to US$200” with an updated USWC rate of US$3,900/FEU and US$4,700 to the US east coast, both US$300 below previous quotes.

A spokesman for Maersk told Container News, 'Our pricing continues to follow the principle of being market-relevant, transparent and fair.'

Canadian Pacific Railway Limited and Maersk have reached an agreement to build and operate a world-class transload and distribution facility in Vancouver.

The CP transload facility will be an expansion of CP’s existing Vancouver Intermodal Facility and will benefit from turnkey rail infrastructure.

The new facility is designed to apply Maersk’s global integrator of container logistics strategy and will offer customers access to a multi-commodity transload facility that will rely on the substantial use of rail instead of truck in the Vancouver market, as CP will shuttle containers to and from the ocean terminals via rail.

Maersk’s ambition to establish a sustainable supply chain aligns with CP’s initiatives to fight climate change, according to the companies. This compelling combination will provide an effective and efficient long-term intermodal solution for customers, said the joint announcement.

“CP’s unique landholdings in Vancouver enable us to bring to market a first-of-its-kind transload facility that creates tremendous opportunity for sustainable growth,” commented CP’s president and CEO, Keith Creel.

U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Office of Field Operations at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility intercepted a load of hard narcotics consisting of alleged methamphetamine and heroin that was concealed within a commercial shipment of produce arriving from Mexico. The estimated street value of the seizure is $6.67 million.

“Significant narcotics interdiction enforcement actions like these have direct and immediate impact on the smuggling organizations who operate in our area,” said Port Director Carlos Rodriguez, port of Hidalgo/Pharr/ Anzalduas. “CBP Field Operations maintains a robust enforcement posture while continuing to facilitate and process legitimate trade and travel, which is a delicate balance.”

On Sep. 12, 2020, a tractor/trailer hauling a commercial shipment of avocados arrived at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge cargo facility and a CBP officer referred the conveyance for further inspection, which included the utilization of non-intrusive imaging equipment. The thorough secondary examination resulted in officers discovering suspected narcotics hidden within the trailer. Officers removed 48 packages of alleged methamphetamine weighing 326 pounds and one package of alleged heroin weighing 2.41 pounds.

In further evidence of how the maritime sector is working in unison to find solutions to long standing problems four industry associations and insurers TT Club are collaborating to produce simplified guidance for packing containers.

The Container Owners Association (COA), Global Shippers Forum (GSF), the International Cargo Handling Co-ordination Association, (ICHCA) International, insurers TT Club and the World Shipping Council representing vessel owners and operators, who together form the Cargo Integrity Group (CIG) announced on 14 September that that they have published a Quick Guide to Container Packing.

The group has been formed with a view to improving the safety, security and environmental performance of the logistics supply chain, through the promotion, awareness and wider use of the Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units – the CTU Code, developed by the International Maritime Organization, with the International Labour Organization and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).

According to the CIG members the guidance on packing containers is a large and complex volume, the Quick Guide will allow shippers to identify cargo types and their packing requirements readily.

In recent months, container shipping has staged a sharp rebound, now nearing pre-pandemic levels. However, the outlook remains clouded in uncertainty. 'Here we are in September, and actually, we've almost recovered back to the levels we had in global container volumes compared with pre-Covid,' Jeremy…

In refrigerated containers the chilled air often short circuits, not keeping the fresh produce at the desired temperature. “Cold air is lazy, it takes the path of least resistance,” explains Barry Hugo, managing director at Dunlash South Africa and Refrigerated Air Flow Technologies (RAFT).  This challenge…

QA Supplies recommends the UHADO-16 and HASO- 8 humidity and temperature loggers for monitoring current humidity and temperature readings simultaneously. These unique products are ideal for recording and monitoring the environment within a barn, warehouse, cooler, refrigerated transportation, and more. LogTag’s…

Since mid-August, green folding crates have replaced the blue crates in the freshmarts of Colruyt Group's food stores (Colruyt Lowest Prices, OKay, Bio-Planet and Spar Colruyt Group). Four folding crates take up as much room as one old crate saving the group transport and space. The transition from blue…

QA Supplies recommends the UHADO-16 and HASO- 8 humidity and temperature loggers for monitoring current humidity and temperature readings simultaneously. These unique products are ideal for recording and monitoring the environment within a barn, warehouse, cooler, refrigerated transportation, and more. LogTag’s…

Forwarders, shippers, and importers have long complained about unreasonable demurrage & detention charges. However, the issue has ballooned in recent months as the coronavirus pandemic is heavily distorting cargo flows. The combination of blanked sailings due to a lack of critical mass of cargo, and…

More than £4 million worth of cocaine was found on freight flights from Kingston, Jamaica. According to the Home Office, all drugs were confiscated by Border Force officials in a series of seizures in August. “Some 22kg of cocaine was seized on 11 August, estimated to be worth £1.8 million. A further…

Growth in seaborne perishable cargo slowed in 2019 but is forecast to better weather the COVID-19 induced economic storm than the dry cargo trade given the broader resilience of the food supply chain. Meanwhile, availability of refrigerated container equipment is forecast to tighten as buoyant trade and…

People often send, for example, broccoli from the Netherlands to Spain. Then they scoop a decent amount of ice over its crate. That's to keep the broccoli in optimal condition. That, however, has a drawback. Things become a mess on arrival. There are puddles of water under all the pallets. Hygiene is…

This weekend, customs officers at the port of Rotterdam discovered a total of 2,100 kilograms of cocaine hidden in two fruit shipments from Ecuador and Costa Rica. The drugs had a total street value of over 157 million euros, the Public Prosecution Service said. The first batch of 1,100 kilograms of…

Fresh Del Monte Produce continues to fulfill its commitment to create a positive impact on the environment with the addition of six new energy-efficient reefer container vessels to its fleet. The addition of the new vessels — named Del Monte Gold, Del Monte Rose, Del Monte Harvester, Del Monte Spirit, Del Monte Valiant and Del Monte Pride — marks a new chapter in environmental sustainability for the company.  

The first of the six vessels, the Del Monte Gold, embarked on the high seas in July, traveling from Hong Kong toward the Panama Canal. Like its siblings, the Del Monte Gold has a full cargo capacity of 1,276 Twenty Foot Equivalent Unit with 634 plugs for 40-foot high cube reefer containers. Given the perishable nature of fresh fruits and vegetables, the air-cooled containers will maintain the cargo at specified temperatures, traveling in reefer mode with multiple temperature variants from -25C to 40C.

U.S. Customs & Border Protection officers intercepted almost 15,000 pounds of marijuana in what was supposed to be a shipment of limes. The narcotics have an estimated street value of almost $60 million.

At the Otay Mesa cargo crossing, CBP officers sent a tractor-trailer to the dock for further inspection after discovering anomalies during a scan by X-ray imaging system.  CBP officers opened the boxes and found large, tape-wrapped packages inside the many boxes manifested as limes. Officers found 622 large, tape-wrapped packages inside the boxes, containing 14,880 pounds of marijuana.  The narcotics have an estimated street value of almost $60 million.

CBP officers also intercepted 668 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a cactus shipment. CBP officers searched inside the crates of cactus pads (which are often used in nopales, or prickly pear, dishes and drinks) and found packages, wrapped with green tape, hidden inside among the pads.

“International drug trafficking organizations will use whatever means they can think of to try and move their illicit shipments into the U.S.,” said Pete Flores, director of field operations for CBP in San Diego. “CBP officers dedicate their careers to protecting our country by securing the border.  For them, these unusual seizures are all in a day’s work.”

In total, officers found 590 packages. The narcotics have an estimated street value of over $1.5 million.

Anti-drug officials in Santa Maria, Colombia, have seized 1,100 kilograms of cocaine bound for Antwerp on Sunday. According to UN Container Control Program coordinator Bob Van den Berghe, the drugs were packed in cases of bananas. In 2020, port control units with the support of the UN program have…

U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Office of Field Operations officers at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility hit it out of the park again with the seizure of another huge load of alleged methamphetamine worth $19.8 million discovered in a commercial produce shipment arriving from Mexico.

“This is another significant strike our officers have made on the methamphetamine smuggling industry,” said Port Director Carlos Rodriguez, port of Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas. “Large seizures like this one underscore the severity of the drug threat and show that our officers remain fiercely dedicated to upholding our border security mission.”

On Aug. 7, a 29-year-old man, a Mexican citizen from Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico arrived at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge cargo facility driving a tractor-trailer containing a commercial shipment of produce. A secondary inspection of the conveyance resulted in CBP officers discovering 521 packages of alleged methamphetamine weighing 992 pounds concealed within the floor of the trailer.

CBP OFO seized the narcotics, the tractor-trailer and arrested the driver. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations continue with the investigation.

Portugal’s National Unit to Combat Narcotics Trafficking has stated that “in recent days, it has launched an operation to combat international drug trafficking, aiming at the seizure of a high quantity of cocaine”. It was within the scope of this operation, which had the support of the Tax and Customs…

U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Office of Field Operations at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility discovered $16.1 million worth of alleged methamphetamine within a commercial trailer hauling a shipment of fresh broccoli.

“This is a substantial amount of hard narcotics that our officers have detected and seized from drug trafficking organizations attempting to smuggle these drugs across our border,” said Carlos Rodriguez, port director, Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas Port of Entry. “By preventing this drug load from reaching the U.S., CBP advances its border security mission, protecting our citizens and communities.”

On Aug. 3, 2020, a 51-year-old male Mexican citizen arrived at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge cargo facility driving a tractor/trailer that contained a commercial shipment of fresh produce. A CBP officer referred the shipment for further inspection, which included a non-intrusive imaging system inspection that allowed the officers to discover packages of suspected narcotics concealed within the trailer. The inspection continued into the following day when ultimately officers removed 1,561 packages of alleged methamphetamine that weighed 804.69 pounds.

“Bananas wouldn’t be available on store shelves around the world if it wasn’t for the pre-conditioning and ripening process via ethylene application,” says Greg Akins, President and CEO of Catalytic Generators. “The same holds true for nearly all mature field-grown tomatoes purchased in grocery stores.”…