What could be better, more special, more festive, and more delicious than plump and luscious red cherries for a holiday? In China, cherries have increasingly become a major part of Chinese New Year festivities. They are given as gifts, used as festive decorations, or as an ingredient in dishes such as desserts. So, when cherries need to be exported to China and other parts of the world, freshness and top product quality are essential.
While cherries' bright red colour is considered lucky in Chinese culture, luck plays no part in ensuring cherry exports are delivered fresh and in peak condition. Join us at the Global Cherry Summit on 20 April in Santiago, Chile, to hear about our Cherry Express & end-to-end Chile-to-China solution's role in successfully delivering cherries on time and in top condition. You can also learn more in this feature, where we explain how our integrated Cherry Express service works.
A custom-made solution for cherries
Most cherries are harvested and exported from Latin America. Chile is the largest producer, and China is the primary importer, receiving over 85% of Chile’s cherry exports. When exporting fresh fruits and vegetables such as cherries, the main goal is for producers to secure the greatest value from their harvest. This requires an end-to-end cold chain that addresses the unique product requirements of the fruit, which for cherries is their limited shelf-life, and effectively working within the fruit’s short harvest season of late November to early February.
To ensure the best possible cold chain service, Maersk developed a specific cold chain solution tailored to the needs of Chilean cherry producers– the Cherry Express service. The solution is designed to expedite the transport of cherry exports. It is a fully integrated, end-to-end logistics and transportation solution that is fast, well-planned and designed to deliver cherries to China and other global markets seamlessly.
For the Chilean cherries, the cold chain starts in Teno, the heart of Chile’s cherry production region. The cherries are carefully handled as they move from orchards to local packing houses, where they are cleaned, sorted and packaged. Maersk reefers filled with cherry boxes are transported over land by rail or truck to the San Antonio port and loaded onto an Ocean Cherry Express vessel. The transit is only 21 days to China – the fastest in the industry – with zero deviation in ETA.
The Fresh Pass team carefully pre-planned each link in the cold chain to ensure a seamless end-to-end journey. This specialised Maersk service for reefer customers features expert container logistics coordination, including booking and documentation for all parties to a perishables shipment.
For more information: maersk.com