Maersk is the largest container shipping company in the world with over 700 ships owned and leased by the Danish Moller family. Even in China and entering Shanghai Harbour is mile after mile of Maersk shipping containers.
The Emma Maersk is over 170,000 tons, and the largest Maersk container vessel in world built in 2017 is Madrid Maersk with over 214,000 tonnage.
What a ship….no wonder ‘Made in China ‘ is displacing North American made goods big time. This monster transports goods across the Pacific in just five days!! Another two will soon be commissioned.
These ships were commissioned by Wal-Mart to get their imported goods from China … They hold an incredible 15,000 containers and have a 207 foot deck beam!! The full crew is just 13 people on a ship longer than a US Aircraft Carrier which has a crew of 5,000. With its 207′ beam it is too big to fit through the Panama or Suez Canals ……..
It is strictly transpacific. Cruise speed: 31 knots. The goods arrive four days before the typical container ship (18-20 knots) on a China-to-California run. 91% of Wal-Mart products are made in China. So this behemoth is hugely competitive even when carrying perishable goods. The ship was built in five sections. The sections are floated together and then welded. The command bridge is higher than a 10-story building and has 11 cargo crane rigs that can operate simultaneously unloading the entire ship in less than two hours.
Additional info: Country of origin – Denmark Length – 1,302 ft Width – 207 ft Net cargo – 123,200 tons Engine – 14 cylinders in-line diesel engine (110,000 BHP) Cruise Speed – 31 knots
Cargo capacity – 15,000 TEU (1 TEU = 20 cubic feet) Crew – 13 people! First trip – Sept. 08, 2006 Construction cost – US $145,000,000+ Silicone painting applied to the ship bottom reduces water resistance and saves 317,000 gallons of diesel per year.
Editorial Comment! A documentary in late March, 2010 on the History Channel noted that all of these containers are shipped back to China – EMPTY ! Yep, that’s right. We send nothingback on these ships. What does that tell you about the current financial state of the west in crisis? So folks, just keep on buying those imported goods (mostly gadgets) until you run out of money. Then you may wonder what the cause of unemployment (maybe even your job) in the U..S, UK, Canada and even in Australia????
A favorable winter fruit import season from Chilean took a turn for the worse January 31st because of heavy rains and hail.
Chile is reporting serious damage to a number of key fruit crops in their early harvest season following unseasonal heavy rainfall of up to 2.4 inches in production regions.
The Fruit exporters’ association Asoex of Santiago reports rainfall – and hail in some cases – that hit the central and southern regions over the weekend damaging summer fruit crops including blueberries, table grapes, and stone fruit. This will result in lower export volumes than expected for the 2020-21 season.
There are reports of splitting in blueberries from later areas, especially in the Brightwell and Ochlockonee varieties, while in the Last Call variety, the situation is under evaluation. However, the damage observed so far will affect the production and export volume this season.
The Chilean blueberry industry had last year forecasted a slight increase in fresh exports to around 111,000 metric tons (MT). The South American country has shipped only 15 percent of its shipments for the season.
Asoex report grapes are “very damaged,” not only due to splitting, but also because of grapevine trellises collapsing due to the weight of the water. The Thompson variety in Rancagua, is already showing evidence of “mal de media luna” (half-moon syndrome), associated with a fungus that rots the grain and damages any attempt to market the fruit.
Additionally there was hail, but the effects are still being evaluated.
Additionally, stone fruit, there are losses due to splitting and possible rotting. Loss estimates are currently impossible because of continuing rain in some areas, while others areas remain inaccessible.
From Arizona to Idaho and Washington state gross freight rates for fruits and vegetables are often 10 to 30 percent higher than they were at this time a year ago. At the same time many rates are moving little or downward right now on a week to week basis.
Due to COVID shipping disruptions, and competitive dry freight rates, more attractive hauls not requiring refrigeration are a reason many types of transportation rates are well above 2020 before the pandemic shutdowns and restrictions.
Here’s a glimpse at some possible loading opportunities in the western half of the United States.
Arizona
The Yuma District continues shipping over 1400 truck loads of Iceberg, romaine and other lettuces each week as well as some broccoli and cauliflower. A lot of multi pick up loads are starting in California (Oxnard, Kern County, desert areas etc.) and the truck is filled in Yuma or Nogales.
Yuma vegetables to New York City – grossing about $8100, over 19 percent higher than this time last year.
Mexican veggies crossing through Nogales are generally in the heaviest volume now for winter shipments lead by items ranging from zucchini and other types of squash, as well as vine ripe, plum and grape tomatoes. There’s also loadings of bell peppers, cucumbers and a host of other mixed veggies at Nogales distribution warehouses.
Nogales vegetables to Dallas – grossing about $3000, 30 percent over a year ago.
Washington
Nearly 2800 truckload equivalents of apples are moving out of the Yakima and Wenatchee valleys each week, plus around 450 truckload equivalents of pears.
Washington apples and pears – grossing about $8500 to New York City, about 25 percent higher than a year ago.
Along the state line, Washington’s Columbia Basin and the nearby Umatillia Basin in Oregon are shipping over 900 truckloads of potatoes and about 300 loads of onions weekly.
Idaho/Oregon
There’s over 900 truck loads of onions being moved weekly from the Western Idaho/Malheur County, Oregon area.
The Twin Falls region in Idaho is shipping around 1850 truckload equivalents of potatoes each week.
Idaho potatoes grossing about $5800 to Atlanta, 28 percent more than a year ago.
Texas
Mexican produce crossings through South Texas continue to give Nogales a run for its money (loads). The 1250 loads each week of avocados leads the pack, although there is good volume with vine ripe and plum tomatoes, as well items ranging from cucumbers, bell peppers, broccoli, limes and a host of other veggies and tropical fruits.
Mexican produce crossings through the Lower Rio Grande Valley – grossing around $5800 to New York City.
One of the last things Southern hemisphere winter fruit needs is further delays when normal transit times to the U.S. are up to three weeks.
Long Beach and Los Angeles ports are facing log jams of container vessels, as perishable produce is spending more time on the water than normal.
Bengard Marketing of Los Angeles notes there has been lingering problems for months creating a perfect storm, resulting in fruit quality suffering. For example, fruit normally having a three week transit period via container from Chile is now experiencing five to six weeks on the water.
Sensitive fruits such as peaches, apricots and cherries are being affected the most from unpredictable arrival schedules. As volumes increase, there could be even more congestion after getting the product to storage, because it may be subject to repacking to get rid of poor quality fruit or even facing delays due to survey claims.
Concerning Peru, all grapes are subjected to a cold treatment upon arrival, which means adding a few days on top of the same delay faced by all other containers. Some shipments from Peru are being redirected to Port Hueneme, where there are fewer restrictions and less timing of discharge is much better as they don’t have as much congestion as L.A.
Many exporters are converting to bulk vessels that have their own terminal, along with operations that are not as impacted as the container vessel terminals are. While bulk vessel shipments are more predictable, the frequency of arrivals is much less than shipping via container vessels.
Renaming dragon fruit by an Indian state has occurred decision because of the original name’s “association with China. It has set off a storm of jokes and memes.
Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said the fruit would now be called ‘kamalam’, Sanskrit for the lotus flower, the BBC reports. The lotus is sacred to Hindus and is India’s national flower.
India-China relations have nosedived in recent months. The two countries troops are locked in a tense stand-off along their long Himalayan frontier. India began cultivating dragon fruit only in recent years and it’s now grown in parts of Gujarat too.
It belongs to a family of cactus – and is believed to have earned its fearsome name because its pointy outer layer resembles the scales of a dragon. Though it’s a tropical fruit native to Central America and is largely imported from South America, many in India associate it with China because of its name.
Rivals India and China are often described as the elephant and the dragon respectively, and relations between the neighbors have been especially frosty since their armies clashed high in the Himalayas in the summer. The state’s decision to rename the fruit was announced on Tuesday by Rupani.
The lotus is also the election symbol of the Bharatiya Janata Party, to which he and India’s PM Narendra Modi belong.
“The name dragon fruit is not proper, and due to its name one thinks of China. So we have given it the name ‘kamalam’,” Rupani told the local press. Rupani did not elaborate but that was all the inspiration the internet needed.
Dole Food Company has ordered of 500 energy-efficient reefer units from Maersk Container Industry (MCI), working in cooperation with leasing company, Textainer.
Star Cool’s AV+ system allows the units to control fresh air intake by a preselected maximum level of CO2 inside the reefer. These units allow Dole to have greater control over the product while shipping. AV+ was designed to maximize cargo freshness of delicate bananas and other fresh fruit, as vessels traverse the tropics while optimizing energy efficiency.
On a warm day, it would be counterproductive to drive a car with the air conditioning on and the windows open; in layman’s terms, the logic behind AV+ is similar, an MCI statement said.
“Dole prioritizes quality and innovation in all aspects of their business,” said Global ad of Sales and Marketing at MCI, Anders Holm to Portal Portuario. “These are also values that are important to MCI and we are very pleased about Dole confirming their trust in MCI by expanding their operated Star Cool fleet once again.”
Dole will pick up the new reefers with their own container vessel newbuilding Dole Maya from the port of Qingdao in China.
As the 2020-21 Florida tropical avocado season winds down, Brooks Tropicals has been supplementing supplies of their original tropical avocado branded SlimCado™ with fresh fruit from the Dominican Republic.
“We had a pretty good year in terms of crop-size here in Florida”, says Peter Leifermann, VP of Sales and Marketing at Brooks, in a press release.
“Although we may not quite make our industry-wide goal of bushels, each variety produced a good crop and we were especially pleased with the late fall varieties.
We have a few more months of Florida fruit to harvest but it will be limited. Our partnerships in the Dominican Republic have allowed us to serve our customers for the entire calendar year.”
To continue to meet growing consumer demand for tropical avocado, Brooks Tropicals has partners in the Dominican Republic that grow and pack that country’s several varieties.
Almost 30 years ago, Brooks and Agroindustria Ocoena, S.A. (AIOSA) struck a relationship that began with an avocado packing line and continues today with the shared generations of agricultural knowledge between the firms.
Brooks Tropicals has been growing tropical avocado, fruits, and vegetables in the Caribbean and South Florida for nearly a hundred years and AIOSA began exporting in 1987. Brooks also has another decades-old partner in AMR-AGRO.
Similar to the Florida crop, the Dominican Republic has over 20 different varieties in production, but January begins the transition from a Lula and Semil dominant crop to the Carla variety.
Carla tropical avocado are characterized by their more round shape – as opposed to pear-like – and being a late season variety, it’s higher oil content.
“Tropical avocados are so near perfect, it’s like they take into consideration our diets!” Leifermann continues. “In the summer they are lighter in flavor, and as the cooler months come they have a richer flavor. The Carla – similar to our proprietary Florida winter varieties – is a delicious fruit that pleases even the most hardened hass-lovers.”
Brooks Tropicals will distribute Carla variety tropical avocado from January until the end of April.
ATHENS, GA– As a leader in providing environmentally sustainable transport refrigeration solutions, Carrier Transicold has begun offering North America’s refrigerated haulers the new-generation refrigerant R-452A as an option for new and existing equipment. Carrier Transicold is a part of Carrier Global Corporation (NYSE: CARR), a leading global provider of healthy, safe and sustainable building and cold chain solutions.
Starting in the first quarter of 2021, purchasers can specify R-452A on all Carrier Transicold trailer and diesel truck equipment orders. Carrier units with R-452A refrigerant have performance comparable to Carrier units with R-404A, the traditional transport refrigerant, in terms of refrigerant capacity, pulldown, fuel efficiency and reliability.
“R-452A has a global warming potential (GWP) of 2140, which is about half that of R-404A (GWP 3922),” said Bill Maddox, senior manager, product management, Carrier Transicold. “We are offering it for fleets that want to improve their environmental profiles and to prepare for compliance with evolving regulations.”
The California Air Resource Board (CARB) has proposed prohibiting high GWP refrigerants on new transport refrigeration equipment starting in 2022. Additionally, Canada has banned high GWP refrigerants for new transport refrigeration starting in 2025, in keeping with its plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the Kigali Agreement of the Montreal Protocol. In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency has approved the use of R-452A for transport applications but has not prohibited continued use of R-404A.
While there are currently no retrofit regulations proposed, Carrier Transicold units already in service can easily take advantage of R-452A. For Carrier units with an electronic expansion valve, converting requires only an operating software update. On Carrier Transicold truck units and older trailer units that use a mechanical expansion valve, the valve will require a manual adjustment or replacement, depending on the model.
Refrigerant cost may be a factor for some fleets considering conversion to R‑452A, Maddox said. Currently R-452A is three to four times more expensive than R‑404A, which will add somewhat to the initial equipment purchase and could affect refrigerant-related repair costs.
“Still, haulers should start to consider when transitioning to a lower GWP refrigerant will make the most sense for their fleets,” Maddox said. “While the EPA permits continued use of R-404A, the proposed 2022 California changes may ultimately drive use of R-452A as a de facto national standard, due to the large volume of refrigerated traffic that moves into that state.”
About Carrier Transicold
Carrier Transicold helps improve transport and shipping of temperature-controlled cargoes with a complete line of equipment and services for refrigerated transport and cold chain visibility.
The previous contract included a 32-cent-per-hour increase, which Daniel Kane Jr., the Teamsters Local 202 president, said was not enough with workers at risk during a pandemic.
“I’m hoping that that will resonate with workers throughout this country because our members are essential, and decent, hardworking family people,” Kane said during a news conference.
The strike was a “tough week” but worth it, Stephen Katzman, owner and president of S. Katzman Produce and president of the Hunts Point Cooperative Board told the New York Times.
“We have kept the city fed throughout the Great Depression, two World Wars, two recessions and now a global pandemic, without ever breaking our crucial role in the food supply chain,” he told the NYT. “New Yorkers can rest assured that they will continue to have access to a consistent supply of fresh fruits and vegetables…[even though] it cost us money and it was a tough week.”
The strike drew attention in the media with lawmakers including U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joining picket lines. A handful of protesters were arrested, but the events remained peaceful.
Fewer exports of Peruvian mangoes are predicted this year as Brazil and Ecuador are wrapping up their seasons.
Exporters in Peru express optimism starting their season since Ecuador had season higher volumes towards the beginning, with lower volumes projected for its late season in January.
The current prediction of mango shipments from Peru to the U.S. for the season is 15.5 million boxes, 20% of what was exported to the U.S. a year ago. Mango volumes from Mexico will only start to pick up at the beginning of March.
During the last weeks of December, the total from Brazil, Ecuador and Peru was 25% lower than the same period of 2019. Estimated arrivals for January 2021 are substantially lower than those of last year at the same time.
Although demand during this time isn’t high, the low arrivals are already driving prices up to unusual numbers at a time when this normally wouldn’t happen (at least not in the last two seasons).
