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Wilmington port wins permission to complete refrigeration process on dock
来源：shippingazette.com 编辑：编辑部 发布：2017/12/19 13:46:47
NORTH Carolina's port of Wilmington has become the first southeastern port in the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) In-Transit Cold Treatment Pilot programme to be granted permission to accept perishable goods that are midway through the two-week refrigeration process and then complete the refrigeration process in the terminal.
Other southeastern ports that participate in the USDA's programme are only allowed to accept goods that have completed the two-week refrigeration process.
Wilmington's reefer imports volumes increased by 18.6 per cent to 495 TEU in the first three quarters of 2017, compared to the same period last year, according to PIERS, a sister product of JOC.com.
Wilmington joined on December 1 the USDA's In-Transit Cold Treatment Pilot programme, which was started in 2013 and allows cargo to enter the participating ports after undergoing a two-week cold treatment process to safeguard against shipments bringing in fruit flies and other pests.
"We have been working hard to get this programme approved," North Carolina Ports executive director Paul Cozza was quoted as saying in a report by IHS Media. "Demand from our customer base is very strong and they wanted to see this capability for Wilmington move forward."
Wilmington has been struggling to recover cargo volumes lost in the collapse of Hanjin Shipping just over a year ago. The port handled 122,619 TEU in the first nine months of this year, representing a decrease of 28.8 per cent year on year.
Commenting on Wilmington's ability for partly refrigerated goods to complete the refrigeration process at the port, North Carolina Ports vice president Hans Bean said it "opens up a totally new dimension for our port and an option for importers to complete treatment after discharge, which is unique in the south and mid-Atlantic and only available at the port of Wilmington at this time".
The port expects the designation to significantly increase the number of direct imports of produce from across the Americas, including blueberries, grapes, apples, pears and citrus.
Port officials said Wilmington has ample refrigerated container capacity, with 300 plugs on terminal and the capability to add more. In addition to Wilmington's reefer capacity, the port is also home to a 101,000-square-foot refrigerated warehouse located on terminal - one of only a few in-port cold storage facilities in the US.
Other southeastern ports that participate in the USDA's programme are only allowed to accept goods that have completed the two-week refrigeration process.
Wilmington's reefer imports volumes increased by 18.6 per cent to 495 TEU in the first three quarters of 2017, compared to the same period last year, according to PIERS, a sister product of JOC.com.
Wilmington joined on December 1 the USDA's In-Transit Cold Treatment Pilot programme, which was started in 2013 and allows cargo to enter the participating ports after undergoing a two-week cold treatment process to safeguard against shipments bringing in fruit flies and other pests.
"We have been working hard to get this programme approved," North Carolina Ports executive director Paul Cozza was quoted as saying in a report by IHS Media. "Demand from our customer base is very strong and they wanted to see this capability for Wilmington move forward."
Wilmington has been struggling to recover cargo volumes lost in the collapse of Hanjin Shipping just over a year ago. The port handled 122,619 TEU in the first nine months of this year, representing a decrease of 28.8 per cent year on year.
Commenting on Wilmington's ability for partly refrigerated goods to complete the refrigeration process at the port, North Carolina Ports vice president Hans Bean said it "opens up a totally new dimension for our port and an option for importers to complete treatment after discharge, which is unique in the south and mid-Atlantic and only available at the port of Wilmington at this time".
The port expects the designation to significantly increase the number of direct imports of produce from across the Americas, including blueberries, grapes, apples, pears and citrus.
Port officials said Wilmington has ample refrigerated container capacity, with 300 plugs on terminal and the capability to add more. In addition to Wilmington's reefer capacity, the port is also home to a 101,000-square-foot refrigerated warehouse located on terminal - one of only a few in-port cold storage facilities in the US.