Chilled Meat - Source Loading

Moving chilled, fresh meat between countries that are far apart used to require expensive air transport. Today, chilled meat moves over the ocean in refrigerated containers and arrives at faraway markets at the peak of freshness.

Benefits of source loading

Source-loaded intermodal transport is the key to the successful ocean transport of chilled meat. With source loading, you can load meat into a container directly at the packing house, and the product stays in the same container until it reaches its final destination.

This method of transportation optimizes temperature management and eliminates opportunities for spoilage and tampering that can occur with repeated handling. The shelf life for boxed chilled meat with this method is between 55 and 60 days.

Source-loaded intermodal transport has a number of benefits over traditional surface transportation (from truck-trailer to vessel to truck-trailer) and airfreight. The shelf life is far superior, typically up to 25 days longer than the usual 30 to 35 day shelf life, when compared with other transportation methods. Source-loaded intermodal transport also costs about the same as traditional surface transportation and is significantly less expensive than airfreight. In essence, source loading provides the longest shelf life for the most economical price per pound.

Other benefits of source-loaded intermodal transport include the superior temperature control of the container's refrigeration unit, as well as greater savings in terms of time and money, resulting from the direct movement of containers into the distribution pipeline (without cold-storage facility transloading).

Teamwork is crucial to success

In transporting chilled meat, APL builds on its experience in working in teams with people from inside and outside the company to solve potential problems. Our staff works in partnership with everyone involved in the move - from suppliers to packing house employees to the truckers - to solve logistics problems and create a custom-tailored service that will ensure a smooth, reliable transit. Customers deal only with APL, not the myriad of companies involved in a move. APL also helps our customers handle the many legal requirements governing perishables transportation worldwide.

In addition to its management and consulting efforts, APL has established strict quality control guidelines and procedures for transporting and distributing chilled meat. These help ensure that the product always arrives at its destination in the freshest condition.