LATAM has become the first airline in the Americas to obtain CEIV Pharma certification following a successful IATA audit, announced at the Air Cargo Europe Exhibition.
Receiving the certificate from IATA’s global head of cargo Glyn Hughes, LATAM Cargo chief executive, Andres Bianchi, said: “This certification demonstrates the quality and consistency of our PHARMA product. As the first airline in the Americas to obtain this certification, we reaffirm our aim of becoming the preferred choice for cargo transport to, from and inside Latin America.”
The goal of the CEIV certification scheme is to raise industry know-how to improve pharmaceutical handling.
Director of LATAM Cargo Europe, Guido Henke, added that CEIV certification added: “In Europe, we started the implementation of our PHARMA product over two years ago and have been focused on expanding it to different origin stations since then. In 2016, we moved 2,685 tons from Europe to Latin America with this product. This certification confirms our professional work and encourages us to continue with the same dedication on the expansion of this product out of Europe into South America.”
IATA’s regional vice president for the Americas, Peter Cerda, said: “This globally recognized standard is a guarantee of safety, security, compliance and efficiency for the high value shipment of pharmaceuticals. IATA is striving to support the modernization of the air cargo industry and CEIV Pharma is an example of how by partnering for mutual benefit we can generate value for stakeholders across the air cargo value chain and most importantly, our customers.”
Miami in the US is a strategic hub for LATAM’s pharma traffic. It has the largest cold warehouse in its entire network and is the main gateway to Latin America. Miami-Dade aviation director Emilio
González added that it was the first airport in the western hemisphere designated by IATA as a pharma hub, adding: “Pharma trade to and from MIA continues to be a huge growth area for us, most recently surging by 48% in value year over year to $4.4 billion in 2016.”
With the three-year certification, LATAM Cargo hopes to position itself as a leading pharma carrier between Latin America and North America as well as Europe.
