Archive For The “News” Category
Scout Logistics Corporation, North America’s leading perishable logistics specialist, is pleased to announce the promotion of Mr. Jamie Klayman to Vice President. Jamie, a 8+ year veteran in the business, will be responsible for continuing to build sales within the North American market with specific focus on interstate loads transitioning from the Western states and Texas, to major international produce hubs throughout North America.
Previously, Mr. Klayman has served as Sales Manager – US Freight, where he led his team to record sales in 2014. Furthermore, Mr. Klayman played an integral part in Scout Logistics’ recent accreditation as one of Canada’s 50 Best managed Companies.
“With Jamie’s promotion, Scout is looking forward to continued growth throughout the North American Market and a renewed focus on interstate freight,” said Lorne Swartz, President of Scout Logistics Corporation. “He is well known and respected in the industry and his outstanding ability to manage both client and carrier needs seamlessly, only strengthens our position in this market. His promotion is well deserved and is a result of his hard work and outstanding contributions to Scout’s exceptional growth.”
Jamie has almost a decade of produce logistics experience managing ground shipments for some of North America’s largest chains. “I am excited to take on this opportunity and increase Scout’s presence in the US market”, said Jamie.
About Scout Logistics Corporation
Scout Logistics is one of Canada’s largest non-asset based transportation providers. Founded in 2011, Scout has built a reputation for providing customers with best-in-class customer service, superior on-time delivery, and transformative technological applications. Scout transports over 500 million pounds of refrigerated goods each year, and has quadrupled its revenue since inception. To learn more about Scout, visit www.scoutlogistics.com.
If you end up in jail in this town, you better like being a vegetarian. One of America’s toughest – and best sheriff’s, Joe Arpaio has a say when it comes to the decision to change Maricopa County’s prison menu to a much more produce-conducive diet.
“They may not like the food, but if they don’t, the other alternative is to not go to jail,” Sheriff Arpaio said in a Phoenix Business Journal report.
And if that doesn’t work, bring in PETA spokeswoman and celebrity Pamela Anderson to dish the food. The Bay Watch star and animal advocate stopped by to serve lunches and promote the change, expressing her hope that other facilities would follow Mariposa’s example.
“We’re saving a lot of lives and I think it’s very helpful and encouraging to get people to eat compassionately and make non-violent choices,” Anderson said, according to the Kansas City Star.
From the business aspect, Sheriff Arpaio told the Phoenix Business Journal that the produce-charged vegan menu is not only a healthier option, it saves the county an additional $200,000 a year in food cost.
The jail system began the shift in diet provisions in 2013 with a focus on vegetarian, however the county contract still permits meat purchases, according to a Yahoo report from the time. Those contracts will expire in May of 2017, and whether or not they will be renewed is still a debate that continues.
While there appears to be local controversy with the county’s food suppliers and those advocating on behalf of inmates who do not necessarily want to be vegan, one thing is for sure; being served by the Baywatch star certainly helped the inmates eat their veggies.
Seven public meetings over the last two years to develop recommendations for federal agencies have been held by an expert committee that has recommended Americans eat more plant-based food, including fruits and vegetables.
“Now that the advisory committee has completed its recommendations, HHS and USDA will review this advisory report, along with comments from the public — including other experts — and input from other federal agencies as we begin the process of updating the guidelines,” said Health & Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a joint statement.
Notably, the committee found that the consumption of fruits has remained low, but stable, for the U.S. population. Vegetable intake has declined, particularly among children and adolescents.
Soon after its recent release, the report was criticized by the meat industry for its move away from recommending lean meat dishes.
“We appreciate the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s recognition of the important role that lean meat can play in a healthy balanced diet, but lean meat’s relegation to a footnote ignores the countless studies and data that the committee reviewed for the last two years that showed unequivocally that meat and poultry are among the most nutrient-dense foods available,” said North American Meat Institute President and CEO Barry Carpenter.
A consumer advocate, however, praised the committee for its latest recommendations.
“The committee has boldly stated that a sustainable diet, higher in plant-based foods and lower in animal-based foods, is better for both our health and the planet than the current American diet,” said Michael Jacobson, director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “The DGAC has always urged greater consumption of fruits and vegetables, but the recommendation to eat less red and processed meat deserves to be in the final Dietary Guidelines for Americans — and not excised at the behest of the meat industry.”
by Transportation Intermediaries Association
Orlando, FL – The Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) is pleased to announce the release of the TIA & United Fresh Produce Association’s joint Broker-Shipper contract. This is the latest model contract offered exclusively to TIA members. All of TIA model contracts are exclusive to TIA members and can be found under the member’s only section of the TIA website.
The two organizations began working on the model agreement over six months ago with a small working group consisting of members of both organizations. On the importance of the model agreement and both organizations working together, TIA and United Fresh member Kenny Lund notes:
“Shippers and logistics companies worked together to create a model contract that is fair to both parties. Now, United Fresh Produce Association and TIA have taken it to the next level by adapting the model contract for produce transportation. Once again it is a balanced and it will save member companies time and money when they use it”
“I am very proud of the time commitment by members of both associations to put this model contract together. The level of expertise in the working groups was impressive and has led to a helpful document.”
TIA member James Lee, Vice President, Legal Affairs for Choptank Transport speaks about the importance of TIA and United Fresh Produce Association creating this model agreement:
“In today’s age, transportation contracts are a necessity. As produce is an exempt commodity, and produce transportation is unregulated per se, the importance of United Fresh Produce Association and TIA coming together to create a fair and ethical model contract to be used by both shippers and logistics providers cannot be stressed enough. I am proud to be even a small part of the membership from both organizations who contributed their time, energy, and expertise in order to make this happen.”
In addition to the TIA-United Fresh Produce Association Broker-Shipper model agreement, TIA is pleased to announce updated versions of the Co-broker, Broker-IMC, and Broker-Forwarder model agreements.
TIA Contracts Subcommittee Chairman Chip Smith, Chief Operating Officer for Bay and Bay Transportation speaks about the importance of TIA developing these model contracts.
“TIA model contracts help level the playing field for the contracting parties by eliminating over-reaching clauses commonly promoted by one side or the other while comprehensively covering all the critical contract elements. By promoting industry best practices, we help advance the professionalism and fair trade for all.”
Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA)
TIA is the professional organization of the $162 billion third party logistics industry. TIA is the only organization exclusively representing transportation intermediaries of all disciplines doing business in domestic and international commerce. TIA is the voice of transportation intermediaries to shippers, carriers, government officials and international organizations.
While the Nogales port of entry has under gone major upgrades during the past couple of years, there’s concerns that although trucks from Mexico are crossing the border more efficiently, once they get into Arizona, there’s gridlock getting out of town to deliver loads of fresh produce to points across North America.
Last January, for example, two 18-wheelers collided on Grand Avenue in route to Nogales and nearby Rio Rico warehouses. Traffic was brought to a screeching halt. The upgrades to the border crossing allows for more inspections to be made faster, but the growing gridlock getting to distribution warehouses, not to mention leaving town, causes plenty of headaches for produce handlers and produce truckers alike.
As a result Nogales produce shippers as well as the locally based Fresh Produce Association of the Americas are pushing state and federal government officials for major upgrades that would allow big rigs to get from the border to Interstate 19 without running into any traffic lights or making the steep climb onto the highway from Mariposa Road.
The state of Arizona has budgeted $6 million for a feasibility study. Some estimates for the total project have ranged from $60 million to $150 million.
Supporters are calling for construction of a “fly over” bypass allowing trucks to get from the border to Interstate 19. In addition to the flyover, the project would include improvements to Exits 12 and 17 in Rio Rico, the exits for many of the Nogales area’s distributors.
The Nogales port of entry now has a capacity for 4,000 vehicles a day, but even during peak times of the year, only about 1,800 vehicles are crossing daily.
(The purveyor of this website has written off and on for decades about railroads hauling produce. More specifically, stories about how the rails often lacked an understanding of perishables transportation, as well as not making it a priority. If the following lawsuit has merit this could prove to be another example of the risks involved in transporting perishable fruits and vegetables by rail.)
A multi-million dollar federal lawsuit against BNSF Railway Co., blaming the railroad for the failure of the refrigerated rail service for fresh produce has been filed by Steven Lawson, former president and CEO of Cold Train, and Mike Lerner, former managing member of the company. Both claim they had to shut down their rail service for fresh produce because BNSF failed to meet its promise for 72-hour delivery times.
Seeking $1 million in damages, the case was filed in federal court in Spokane, WA recently.
The lawuit alleges that the 72-hour “on-time percentage” steadily dropped from 92% in August 2013 to 3% in April 2014 because BNSF was favoring oil and coal over fresh produce in its scheduling. This resulted in Cold Train losing most of its fresh produce business, including apples, onions, pears, potatoes, carrots and cherries, which was more than 70% of the company’s business, the complaint alleges.
“The shutdown of Cold Train was caused by a significant slowdown in BNSF’s service schedules on its northern corridor line beginning in the fall of 2013 because of increased rail congestion as a result of BNSF hauling larger volumes of oil and coal from the Northern Plains region,” according to the April 7 news release.
A spokeswoman for the railroad said as of April 8 BNSF had not been served with the complaint and therefore its officials could not comment on specific allegations.
“But any suggestion that BNSF would intentionally seek to cause harm to any customer runs completely contrary to how BNSF conducts business,” BNSF communications director Amy Casas said.
“BNSF did experience well documented service issues following unprecedented demand levels and historic winter weather events beginning late in 2013, but we worked to remedy those situations and regularly communicated with our customers throughout the period so that they could anticipate when service would improve and plan accordingly.”
Cold Train shipped approximately 300 containers a month in 2011, according to the release. By 2013 it was shipping 700 per month with a goal of 1,000 per month by the end of that year. BNSF required the Cold Train to acquire a minimum of 111 refrigerated containers.
“BNSF also required the Cold Train to ship a minimum of 95% of the Cold Train’s entire container movements with BNSF, effectively prohibiting the Cold Train from using other carriers,” according to the news release.
By May 2012, Cold Train had 175 containers in service with another 100 on order for delivery in January 2013. Cold Train continued to purchase and lease containers, and by September 2013, the company had over 400 refrigerated shipping containers in service.
“In March 2014, representatives of Cold Train and Federated Railways Inc. met with BNSF representatives in Fort Worth to discuss the Cold Train’s business and its future with BNSF. At the meeting, BNSF continued to encourage Cold Train and Federated to proceed with the sale. Immediately after the meeting, Federated provided Cold Train a $1.25 million capital infusion based solely on that meeting, and announced that it was acquiring Cold Train,” according to the news release.
Ultimately Federated withdrew its offer to buy Cold Train. Lerner and Lawson contend they had to “walk away with nothing” from a business that had been worth more than $30 million before April 2014.
Pushed by national promotions and a 25 percent increase in distribution, Ambrosia apples are riding a retail wave all the way to the cash register. Over the past 13 weeks, a record 14,022 supermarkets put Ambrosia on the shelves for consumers. As a result, Nielsen data shows Ambrosia ranked No. 9 in total dollars among all apple varieties during this period, and it had the strongest growth of any apple in the top 10 nationally.
Ambrosia has broken into a new level,” Steve Lutz, vice president of marketing for CMI, said in a press release. “The biggest challenge for any club variety apple is to make the jump from being a niche item to a year-round item. The sales data show that Ambrosia have bridged the gap to becoming a ‘must have’ apple for retailers.”
With a large national crop, apple prices and retail shelf prices have been lower throughout the entire 2014-15 season. Over the most recent 13-week period from November through January, Nielsen scan data shows that total U.S. apple dollars increased less than 1 percent, while volume increased only slightly by 2.3 percent.
In contrast, during this same period Ambrosia apple sales skyrocketed and dollars jumped 19 percent. The increase in Ambrosia sales led performance of the top 10 apple varieties during the period. Honeycrisp dollars increased by 15 percent, followed by Pink Lady (up 7 percent) and Granny Smith (up 2 percent). All other apple varieties in the top 10 declined in year-over-year sales during the period.
“It’s just really gratifying to see consumers and retailers alike discover Ambrosia,” said Lutz. “The sales success speaks for itself.”
by The Georgia Pecan Growers Association
TIFTON, Ga. — The Georgia Pecan Growers Association is partnering with Schwinn Bicycles, a brand of Dorel Industries, for the biggest cross-promotional partnership in the history of Georgia Pecans. This alliance begins April 1, 2015 and runs through September 30, 2015 with monthly giveaways of Schwinn bicycles, helmets, locks and Georgia pecans.
The Georgia Pecans/Schwinn promotion kicks off in April, also known as National Pecan Month, and it will continue into May, which is also National Bike Month. Monthly prize drawings will occur all summer long and into September as well.
In addition, the partners will be represented together at the Produce Marketing Association (PMA) Convention in October 2015.
Consumers can enter the Georgia Pecans/Schwinn Sweepstakes by visiting www.georgiapecan.org beginning April 1, 2015.
“Pecans are one of the healthiest products at the grocery store today,” said Brad Ellis, president of the Georgia Pecan Growers Association. “Pecans are high in antioxidants and are heart healthy. We promote a healthy lifestyle, and that’s why aligning Georgia Pecans with Schwinn is a fantastic fit. With Georgia being the #1 pecan state in the U.S. and Schwinn being the #1 bike brand, this partnership couples two tremendous brands.”
“Good health is all about exercise and nutrition, and Schwinn bicycles provide the exercise, while Georgia Pecans provide the good-for-you nutrition solution,” said Milissa Rick, Global Director of Consumer Activation, Schwinn. “Bicycling is a sport for people of all ages – young, old, male, female, serious athletes, and weekend warriors.”
The Georgia Pecans/Schwinn Sweepstakes will be promoted in a variety of ways, including on video screens in New York’s Times Square. Support will include print advertising, on-pack stickers on pecan packages, social media and Schwinn cross-promotional support. The promotion will also be heavily supported by the Georgia Grown campaign, which represents the statewide interests of Georgia agriculture.
ABOUT THE GEORGIA PECAN GROWERS ASSOCIATION The Georgia Pecan Growers Association represents hundreds of pecan growers in the top pecan state in the U.S. Previous marketing initiatives from the Association have focused on research and recipe development, among other areas.
ABOUT SCHWINN Founded in 1895, Schwinn is an American icon, building some of the best-known and best-loved bicycles of all time. With a continued dedication to quality, forever synonymous with the Schwinn name, America’s most famous bicycle brand looks forward to providing another century of innovation and performance to people of all ages. Information about Schwinn bicycles is available at www.SchwinnBikes.com. Be sure to follow Schwinn on Twitter at @RideSchwinn and like Schwinn on Facebook at Ride Schwinn
Opal apples is experiencing a record-breaking fifth season, reaching new highs in volume as well as the number of consumers reached. Opal made its first appearance this season in November and is expected to run through April.
Opal achieved a high record in weekly volume after delivering over 1 million pounds of fresh Opals to retailers across the United States and Canada in the seven-day shipping period ending March 8. Season-to-date, the average weekly volume is running 28 percent higher compared to last season. Also, the number of retailers in the Opal program has reached record highs with 85 percent of the top retailers in the U.S. and Canada carrying Opals for their consumers. In addition, Opal has seen a jump in consumer reach after executing a robust marketing campaign reaching over 1.1 million people.
“We’re having a great Opal season with tremendous momentum,” Keith Mathews, chief executive officer of FirstFruits Marketing of Washington, said in a press release. “Consumers are telling us how much they love the apple, retailers are having great pull-throughs and consequently, we’re experiencing record shipments. We’re so honored to have solid retail relationships to help us sell through nearly 1 million pounds of Opals in one week. Without their support, we could not get Opals to consumers.”
Grown in Washington by Broetje Orchards, Opal apples are sold exclusively in North America by FirstFruits Marketing. The company said this cross between Topaz and Golden Delicious stands out on the shelf with its yellow color and great taste. While Opal is non-GMO it does naturally resists browning after slicing.
Chiquita Brands International Inc. is still moving containers through the Port of Gulfport even after relocating its shipping operations to the Port of New Orleans.
The (Biloxi, Miss.) Sun Herald reports congestion in New Orleans is keeping the Charlotte, N.C.-based Chiquita operating in the Mississippi port.
After a 40-year absence, Chiquita in October returned to the Port of New Orleans.
Chiquita had planned to end its containerized goods handling at Gulfport by December 31, but Gulfport tenant Crowley Maritime Corp. Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., was still shipping northbound Chiquita produce containers into the port, according to the Sun Herald.
Gulfport director said the two ports are working to “alleviate congestion issues at the port of New Orleans,” according to the report.
Chiquita’s transition to New Orleans remains on schedule and Chiquita was expected to continue moving some cargo through Gulfport while the New Orleans port makes improvements, a New Orleans port official said in the report.
For Chiquita, the New Orleans port planned to invest $2.2 million in improvements in refrigerated-container electrical infrastructure and at a distribution and ripening facility leased to Chiquita. Imported bananas provide huge volume from Chiquita throughout North America.