Fresh Food Logistics: How to Optimize Your Supply Chain with TIMOCOM

Fresh food logistics is one of the most challenging aspects of the food industry supply chain. Delivering high-quality products to customers under any circumstances requires reliable and efficient logistics. Fresh food comes with various additional challenges that make it an even more complex undertaking.

Fresh food logistics and transportation processes

Fast-moving goods such as fruit and vegetables need the highest levels of punctuality and professionalism throughout transportation. It's not enough to get there; they have to get there fast and in good condition. Suppliers also have to be flexible when responding to the needs and demands of customers, as these have a habit of changing quickly or diverging from what is strictly standard. 

Getting fresh food transportation right has become increasingly important over the last few years. The COVID-19 pandemic redefined consumer habits and made online shopping and home delivery of groceries far more popular and common than it was. The UK is a major player in the European fresh fruit and vegetable market, being the third biggest importer of such produce. Worth over €7.5 billion this year alone, it accounts for 12% of all imports across Europe - with only Germany and the Netherlands importing more to mainland Europe from their trade hubs, respectively. This makes fresh food logistics more critical than ever before and something for everyone in the food industry to focus on.

In reality, the requirements for the transportation of fresh food are at least as high as those for production. As a result, supply chain management and logistics are vital; finding the right partners can be the difference between success and failure. In this article, we will explore some of the challenges and issues faced by food logistics companies, explore how technology can help optimize your food logistics, from transportation to warehousing, and provide examples of best practices.

Maintaining the freshness of fresh food throughout the transportation process is one of the most significant issues. Still, it is only one of several challenges that suppliers and haulage companies face in the fresh food supply chain.

Sourcing

Because of the challenges around storing and transporting perishable goods, sourcing quality products can take time and effort. As a result, many businesses resort to unsystematic processes and paying over the odds to simplify their supply chains and find quality produce.

This will have a knock-on effect on profits and productivity, which is why the most successful retailers take a more strategic approach to sourcing fresh goods, taking into account a range of factors like season, fluctuation in demand, location of growers, and changeable costs. 

Adding flexibility and choice into the process with the right technology, network, and connections can make all the difference when responding quickly to a volatile market. 

Maintaining quality

The perishable nature of fresh food means that the biggest problem for suppliers, haulers, and retailers is keeping produce in a high-quality condition until it reaches consumers. From the moment fruit is picked, or meat is butchered, food begins to lose freshness. It is unsurprising, therefore efforts to maintain the quality of fresh goods are one of the highest priorities for the food industry.

Temperature-controlled transport is the most effective way of keeping food fresh from supplier to retailer to consumer, but it is more complex a task than it might first appear. Individual products require a range of different temperatures and humidities to optimize quality and freshness. Some fruits require low temperatures and high humidity (between 0 to 2 degrees Celsius and 95% to 100% humidity), while these conditions will damage others and require warmer, less humid storage. Meat, dairy, and alliums all need different conditions, so standardized transport is usually not an option. 

As a result, accessing the transportation and storage you need easily, quickly, and flexibly is vital. Smart systems like TIMOCOM allow supply chains to be redefined, meaning providers can easily absorb short-term spikes in supply or demand and avoid empty loads while maintaining the highest quality. 

Visibility

Waste and inefficiencies in the fresh food supply chain mean that around 30% of usable produce falls through the cracks and remains unsold. A lack of visibility at every stage of the transportation process means that communication breakdowns are frequent, and logistics managers cannot take action to avoid wastage in the event of delays, accidents, or other supply chain issues. 

By taking a more innovative approach to supply chain monitoring and management, suppliers can track and plan routes and processes far more efficiently, our clever feature for real-time updates allows you better quality control and avoids waste. 

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Partnering with TIMOCOM: A Holistic Approach to Food Logistics

TIMOCOM's exchange platform provides the following:

• A holistic approach to food logistics.
• Offering transportation solutions.
• Food warehousing.
• Inventory management.

It gives businesses access to a vast network of verified and reliable logistics companies, a wide range of transport and storage options, and real-time tracking and monitoring of shipments. 

With information on specialized storage space or transport options at your fingertips, TIMOCOM allows suppliers to optimize their warehousing and inventory management, reducing costs and improving overall efficiency - in twenty-seven countries worldwide. 

By partnering with TIMOCOM, you can optimize your logistics from transportation to food warehousing and inventory management. Whether you're exploring how to transport fresh vegetables or dealing with frozen food logistics, TIMOCOM's network and wide range of transport and storage options can help you meet the demands of modern consumers and improve overall efficiency.