DP World & Maersk: Electrifying Banana Deliveries for Fyffes
Collaboration is, without doubt, crucial to achieving sustainability objectives.
By implementing sustainable practices throughout the entire supply chain, businesses are enjoying major successes in their decarbonisation programmes.
DP World, MAN Truck & Bus, Maersk and Fyffes are living proof of what can happen when supply chain partners join forces and pool their resources.
Electrifying bananas
DP World, a logistics specialist which focuses on transportation, supply chain and storage, is driving global trade forward with its sustainable and innovative solutions.
It offers end-to-end solutions to maintain a steady work flow, providing tailored solutions for each company.
The company prioritises sustainability throughout its operations, launching its Low Carbon Truck Programme, and is now pioneering the use of electric trucks in the delivery of bananas.
Nicholas Mazzei, Vice President of Sustainability at DP World, wrote on LinkedIn: "Yesterday, from our Southampton terminal to Basingstoke, we delivered Fyffes their container of bananas fully electric.
"And, in perhaps what is the most impeccable timing, it all happened while I attended a working session on decarbonisation of supply chains and road transport with the WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development.
"Just as I was discussing our work with TRATON GROUP CSO Andreas Follér, I got a message from Dave Munday in our UK logistics team that we had successfully delivered the container by using the MAN Truck & Bus SE eTGX."
Cold chain logistics
Fyffes, the largest importer of Fairtrade certified bananas in the world, is dedicated to ensuring products are delivered in the best-possible condition.
Its latest partnership, with Maersk, has created new shipping routes to optimise on-time delivery and implemented its speciality containers.
Maersk has extensive cold chain experience, with specific temperature-controlled containers and live monitoring to ensure perishable products arrive as promised.
Maersk has its own logistics solution for banana transportation, with StarCare and StarRipe containers. The StarRipe is an innovative container with a controlled ripening function embedded into the controlled atmosphere.
Suppliers can choose specific functions to best suit the atmosphere of the container, with parameters including 'temperature', 'oxygen' and 'carbon dioxide'.
Ripening is automatically activated according to each customer's desired degree of ripeness when the container is opened.
"We have been ripening bananas on the move for some time now, so it is no longer a question of whether it works – now it is about sitting together with our customers and finding how this technology best fits into their processes and their supply chain," adds Michaela Steineker, Senior Business Development Manager at Maersk.
Going green
Both DP World and Maersk have established detailed ESG commitments throughout their operations.
This is now being applied to banana transportation through the implementation of electric vehicles (EVs).
MAN Truck & Bus, meanwhile, sees itself as having a climate protection responsibility and is making the move towards electrification, focusing on battery-electrically-powered commercial vehicles.
The MAN eTGX electric truck is designed specifically for long distances. It has a charging capacity of up to 750kW and can be charged during breaks of around 45 minutes, meaning the scope is up to 350 kilometres.
Nicholas adds: "Making the EV transition happen can't be done by any one company. It took MAN, Maersk, Fyffes and DP World to make this happen. But the key is that it did happen and it will happen more and more."
Through responsible, thorough cold chains and the use of sustainable, electric vehicles, Fyffes bananas were delivered in peak condition, with a low level of emissions.
Together, these companies have shown that electrification is possible throughout the supply chain.
