Easyfresh CEO discusses inevitable change in reefer logistics
Rafael Llerena, Easyfresh CEO:
The price of doing the same old thing is sometimes far higher than the price of a new habit. In fact, the world doesn't like changes, yet they are the only things that bring progress and development. Our business sector-reefer logistics- has already initiated a path towards change. Slowly but surely, customers dealing with perishables are switching their thinking, and are now driven by some retailers and a few other players.
On the one hand, dry cargo logistics is a rapidly evolving market with many factors that are shaping the future of how the transport cargo in the challenging environment of the 21st century, but on the other - look for instance at the "more conservative" reefer cargo. One can observer an obvious fragmentation of the cold chain. Grocery, seafood, meat, poultry retailers, they all have capacity and the need for a real U0turn. Therefore, certain reefer logisticians, like us at Easyfresh, are gradually implementing a new culture within the global temperature-controlled transport industry.
This is done by designing specific product models, adapting some to the different dynamics and maturity levels around the globe and adjusting those to the specific routes and customers' requirements Europe appears here as an adequate arena for change, as European reefer cargo shippers and receivers are demanding first-calss, efficient, and mature logistics solutions. Consequently, the European cold chain is ripe for transformation, and first-mover advantage is up for the taking. Time for classic forwarding or usual or basic reefer shipping should be over in some years, as it is already at its edge regarding cargo not requiring a temperature-controlled environment.
What's your advantage?
Nowadays, hybrid expertise and intelligence-embedded cold chain offers a competitive advantage. But there are not so many of them. In an environment where the mantra is "transform or you're fired," customers will identify and buy these focused reefer logistics services to create self-orchestrated cold chain, reaching previously unimaginable efficiencies.
Focus or dedication to the transportation of perishable and broad know-how in reefer logistics are paramount for it. Neutrality, from a trading perspective and being truly independent or not linked to a big brother, being a shipping line or a cargo owner, is an additional key value to effectively and honestly assist in defending the real needs of respective customers.
Over the past 50 years, logistics, as an integral part of the reefer supply chain management, has naturally evolved along with the changes that have taken place in the fresh and frozen cargo business. Earlier, reefer logistics was a concept totally shad-owed by port-to-port temperature-con-trolled shipping.
As long as sea freight arrangements were clear, logistics was regarded as a field that required not much thinking. The evolution continued into the late 20th century with the incipient involvement of some retailers in the from-crop-to-shelf trend.
This led to an emergence of complex cold chains and to realizing that customers and reefer logistics suppliers should jump from low-value to improved supply chain standards, at least on a per case or per transport leg basis.
Success is earned everyday
We are facing a world with utmost demanding customers with the requirement of a complex cold chain and ever-changing relationships. Therefore, reefer logistics sup-pliers need to closely examine the expertise in reefer trades, adaptability and agility of their logistics networks, because their services will play an ever-greater role in delivering high-performing operations.
Given today's globalization and reefer industry trends, the customers, those being retailers, fresh produce exporters, importers, and many others, are likely to experience an increased level of anxiety and concern. Reefer logistics operators or better, Third Party Logistics (3PL) perishable logistics suppliers, should recognize this. As we say to our team at Easyfresh: "Remember that our success is not an entitlement, but something we need to earn every day."
Linked to the above, to say the reefer logistics industry is becoming non-asset based or less-asset centric, is a stretch because someone has to own and operate the assets. Having said this, what is interesting is to see the appearance of a reefer logistics provider, (e.g. our own company) that doesn't own assets (coldstores, fleets, and soon), but is able to provide perishables logistics services by aggregating information, expertise, and intelligence about assets from the owners. A high understanding of the documentary, and here especially the phytosanitary procedures, is simply a must to grant the success to transport packages.
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