Hello, and welcome to the coolest community in freight!
This year’s Future of Freight Festival takes place Nov. 19-21 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. But it’s not your average conference. Sure, there are wonderful speakers and fireside chats. But that’s only half the fun. F3 is set up with half days of speakers and amazing content. The other half we take over downtown Chattanooga, and there are events, networking and a lot of fun to be had by all. This year, subscribers to Running on Ice get a promo code exclusive to us! You can register with this link or use the code F3ROI24 at checkout for a discount.
All thawed out
Expansion alert. American Airlines Cargo announced that John F. Kennedy International Airport and Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport have become the latest hubs to be certified with the International Air Transport Association’s Center of Excellence for Independent Validators (CEIV) in pharmaceutical logistics. This is on top of the recertification of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Philadelphia International Airport. Miami International Airport’s certification is still valid. The CEIV is the gold standard in pharmaceutical handling.
“The new CEIV certifications underscore our commitment to the safe and effective handling of pharmaceuticals and other life sciences commodities,” Eric Mathieu, head of customer experience at American Airlines Cargo, said in an article in The Stat Trade Times. “We are committed to meeting our customers’ needs while ensuring compliance and excellence in the services we provide, and this is an example of that. We will continue to grow our cold-chain network and focus on how we can offer customers the best products and network for temperature-sensitive shipments.”
Temperature checks
Monday stands to be a telling day at the East and Gulf Coast ports. There is the threat of a strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association. Their contract is up as of Oct. 1 and a new one hasn’t been put in place. This possible strike will impact 13 of the nation’s major ports on the East Coast and Gulf Coast. Unlike work stoppages and slowdowns at West Coast ports last year, President Joe Biden isn’t planning on intervening this time around.
Sizable volumes of temperature-sensitive goods move through the East Coast ports, meaning this strike could cripple cold supply chains. As a preventative measure, most ports are urging shippers to collect any and all goods that are currently sitting at the ports. Some are even offering extended gate house hours and operations on the weekend to get freight out as there is no guarantee that refrigerated cargo will be monitored after Monday should the strike happen.
The current sticking point in negotiations seems to be wages, benefits and port automation.
FreightWaves’ Stuart Chirls writes, “The ILA has rejected terms proposed by port employers represented by the United States Marine Alliance (USMX). It is believed the ILA is seeking a better deal than the 32% pay hike the International Longshore & Warehouse Union reportedly negotiated with West Coast port employers in 2023.”
Food and drug
The legendary Schwan man became the Yelloh man, and now the man is gone. The frozen meal delivery service Yelloh, formerly Schwan’s, will cease operating this fall. The company has cited “insurmountable” business challenges and changes to consumer lifestyles as the main reasons for the closure. The company is currently focusing on winding down operations and helping the remaining 1,100 employees land on their feet.
According to Yelloh’s website, the rebrand from Schwan’s to Yelloh in 2022 was to find “New ways to innovate. That [innovative] spirit led us to evolve our name and our brand. Our name change to Yelloh is part of a brand evolution, along with changes to our website and app, more delivery options, and digital tools to boost the ways we can be convenient to customers.”
In an IndyStar article, board member Michael Ziebell said, “These challenges, combined with changing consumer lifestyles and competitive pressures that have been building for over 20 years, made success very difficult. Digital shopping has replaced the personal, at-the-door customer interaction that was the hallmark of the company.”
Cold chain lanes
This week’s market under a microscope heads to the Pacific Northwest. Reefer capacity in Seattle has tightened a little up in the Emerald City as reefer outbound volumes have dropped 32.67% week over week. A sizable drop in volumes isn’t the only sign of a capacity crunch, but the sharply rising reefer outbound rejection rate isn’t helping matters. It rose 531 basis points week over week to come in at 12.36%. This sharp uptick in rejections and falling volumes could stand to negatively impact spot rates.
Is SONAR for you? Check it out with a demo!
Shelf life
Philadelphia ‘organized operation’ of thieves steal three pallets of seafood in latest cargo heist
Trackonomy launches label tracking SmartTape to transform supply chain visibility
Digital freight broker furloughs workers after losing key customers
Florida ports shutter as Hurricane Helene inches closer
Longshoremen port strike unlikely to hinder holiday retail season, expert says
Wanna chat in the cooler? Shoot me an email with comments, questions or story ideas at moconnell@freightwaves.com.
See you on the internet.
Mary
If this newsletter was forwarded to you, you must be pretty chill. Join the coolest community in freight and subscribe for more at freightwaves.com/subscribe.
The post Running on Ice: American Airlines doubles down on cold chain appeared first on FreightWaves.
