Guatemalan peas become first ocean-to-air shipment between Miami and Amsterdam
The flight launched the airport’s long-awaited Ocean-to-Air Trans-shipment Program, says Ernesto Rodriguez, the Miami-Dade Aviation Department’s marketing section chief. The program, he says, expedites delivery of perishables from Latin America to overseas markets by transferring them from cargo ships arriving at PortMiami or Port Everglades to planes at MIA.
It’s expected to save time and money for cargo shippers, which will not be required to pay customs duties, Mr. Rodriguez says, and will also bring fresher Latin American produce to overseas consumers.
“For the past four years,” he says, “we’ve been working very hard with the US Department of Agriculture to get a permit to start this pilot program. The first company to apply was Customized Brokers, a subsidiary of Crowley Maritime Corp., and they were granted the permit. We have been working with them to get the approvals we need.”
“One of our business models,” says Customized Brokers Vice President Kimberly Wakefield, “is to listen to our customers. They were telling us how hard it is to get perishables to Europe. That’s what started it.”
“Customized Brokers will be able to do four shipments a week,” he says. “It’s a pilot program for the first year, and everybody wants to make sure it works smoothly. We are going through detailed logistics to make sure that the project continues.”
source: miamitodaynews.com
