Switzerland-based global freight forwarder Panalpina has made three of its longstanding agents full members of its Perishables Network: Cropa (Guatemala and Honduras), MIT Cargo (Sri Lanka) and TML (Pakistan).
“In the perishables industry, shippers and local forwarders have traditionally followed their own practices. By working more closely together with our agents, we can establish our own standard and create a reliable and uniform environment for our customer where they enjoy the same experience wherever they may be,” explained Colin Wells, global head of perishables at Panalpina.
Key Central American exports that Cropa handles include bananas, snow peas, berries, baby vegetables, asparagus, melon, mangoes, limes, shrimp and pineapples. MIT Cargo deals with Sri Lanka’s exports of fruits and vegetables, fish, seafood, foliage and cut flowers. TML, meanwhile, supports Pakistan’s mango, vegetable, meat and seafood industries.
The company’s Perishables Network was launched in April last year, covering 15 countries initially and with a plan to expand globally.
Since the launch of the network, Panalpina has increased its perishables activities in Kenya, the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium through partnerships and acquisitions. Most recently, it purchased Belgium’s Adelantex and AD Handling in December.
Panalpina intends to add more perishables agents this year, especially in Africa, and is aiming to be “the preferred global supplier of perishables logistics” by 2020.
