The challenge

Chilean cherries are a staple for Asian tables at this time of year, and Cathay Cargo has always carried a lion’s share of them, even touching down in Chile a few years ago for a special cherry charter. The challenge this time was to get new-season Chilean cherries into the heart of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) as quickly as possible, keeping this sensitive crop fresh, cool and at its best. The consignees wanted three shipments of around 50 tonnes each to be brought directly into the GBA using the new Air-Land Fresh Lane between Hong Kong and Zhuhai.

This was a real end-to-end demonstration of Cathay Cargo’s expertise. Not only is the fruit harvested beyond Cathay Cargo’s own network reach, which meant working closely with interline partners, but these cherries would also be the first commercial consignments to use the Air-Land Fresh Lane, designed to expedite perishable shipments into the booming import market of the Greater Bay Area after a series of successful trials.

From tree to truck to plane

The cherries were grown in central Chile, around cities like Curico and Talca – 100-200km from the capital, Santiago. Handpicked in the cool early morning, they were chilled in water to lower their core temperature for the journey, and then sanitised, checked for quality and packed.

Once certified for export, the cherries were carried by reefer truck to Santiago Airport where they were stored in a cool room prior to their flight. Area Cargo Manager Camilo Gallo worked with Cathay Cargo’s interline partners, to get the cherries to a port served by Cathay Cargo. “While Miami handled around 80 per cent of this year’s Chilean cherry harvest, the cherries going to Zhuhai via the Air-Land Fresh Lane all used NLU to keep the consignment together on one freighter,” explains Gallo.

Activating the Air-Land Fresh Lane

In Hong Kong, the ideally named Cherry Wong, Cargo Operations Centre (COC) Manager Services, Planning and Development, had reefer trucks on standby for the shipments’ transfer under the same air waybills direct to Zhuhai. Given that fresh produce must be picked at its best, such shipments can arrive at short notice. When Wong received warning that the first 50-tonne shipment would be touching down in two days’ time, her team jumped into action.

“After we confirmed that the shipments were on the flight, we reviewed the load plan and worked out which shipment should be towed first, then which truck should be loaded first,” says Wong. “We forwarded this information to the Cathay Cargo Terminal team and our ground handling agent, HAS by Cathay.”

This coordination is important as it enables the shipments to be prepared for inspection by Hong Kong Customs in one go and to sequence truck loading – with one air waybill per truck from the overall shipment. “Customs need to ensure the packaging meets their requirements before they can issue transhipment certificates and affix them to each skid,” says Wong.

Then it was onwards in a convoy of eight temperature‑controlled trucks to Zhuhai, where the cherries were inspected by Customs at the new temperature-controlled import facility – which helps ensure that the cold chain remains unbroken – before completing their journey to their final consignees.

The success of Air-Land Fresh Lane

The first truck left the Cathay Cargo Terminal within two hours of landing, expedited by the single air waybill to Zhuhai. It arrived at the Jiangnan Fruit & Vegetable Wholesale Market in Guangzhou around 10 hours after landing – though this time would increase if a shipment was selected for close inspection by Customs at Zhuhai.

Cargo Sales Executive Sarah Ng points further outlines the benefits of the Air-Land Fresh Lane. “Unlike shipments that arrive in Hong Kong and are collected by consignees for export over the border, shipments heading to Zhuhai under a single air waybill do not require additional hygiene paperwork, nor do consignees need to employ a third-party import inspection service.”

This saves time – and a fee – as the paperwork is all included within the transhipment certificate, and while the third-party inspection service tends to operate within office hours, Customs works 24/7.

Back in the Americas, Camilo Gallo is a fan of the new process. “The Air-Land Fresh Lane gives our customers more alternatives for transporting their perishables to the Chinese Mainland. It’s an impeccable cool-chain proposition. Plus, as we can deliver directly to the consignee warehouse, so it’s a cost-conscious proposition too.”