Shipping your Food and Beverages Cargo with MSC
Meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables and beverages, such as coffee, represent some of the world's most popular commodities. Frequently shipped fresh or in frozen form, for businesses involved in shipping this type of cargo there can be some significant challenges, including maintaining quality, temperature, freshness, or managing seasonal fluctuations.
Thanks to decades of experience shipping beverages and different types of food, our team at MSC has an expansive knowledge of the requirements and challenges of each sector.
Whether you’re shipping frozen food, fresh fruit, or liquid cargo, by partnering with MSC for your international food and beverage exports and imports you’ll be working with a global shipping company with the scale to provide bespoke solutions to meet the needs of your specific cargo.
Shipping Beverages and Food: MSC’s Key Offerings
At MSC we have wealth of experience shipping numerous types of freight around the world. This, combined with our range of shipping solutions, including dry, reefer, and liquid cargo allows us to offer you bespoke services designed to meet the needs of your business.
A Reputation for Integrity
From fresh fruit and fine wines to frozen meat and fish, many of the world’s most celebrated brands trust MSC to fulfil their shipping and logistics needs.
Our scale, resources and flexible approach have enabled us to meet the needs of growers, producers, wholesalers and retailers from all over the world.
Customer Service Tailored to your Needs
Our global network of offices around the world work closely with trade specialists who provide expert advice at a local level. This means we can provide you with rapid and transparent advice as well as offering an unrivalled tailor-made approach for your food and beverages cargo.
End-to-end Reefer Shipping Services
We understand that the best way to ship cold food is by using state of the art reefer technology and end-to-end transportation solutions. Based on your specific needs, we create tailor-made solutions that combine our strong road, rail, and barge network with our weekly and regular shipping services, helping to reduce food loss and enhance quality food supply.
Beyond this, we also ensure that we work closely with you and your team to ensure that your cold chain logistics are as efficient as possible from pick-up to delivery.
Real-Time Tracking of Shipments and Loads
Managing your fresh, frozen, food or beverage shipments requires tracking and monitoring throughout transportation. At MSC our digital solutions enable you to monitor your cargo wherever it is in the world, offering you both peace of mind and the opportunity to react quickly in the event of any delays or bottle necks.
Because you Need more than Port-to-Port Services
Whether you’re shipping cold food, beverages, or fresh fruits and vegetables our teams of local experts have the experience and knowledge to provide the best shipping solution for your business.
Beyond our global port coverage, industry-specific equipment availability, and reliable scheduling, other benefits to shipping with MSC include:
Best Practices and more for your Food Transportation and Logistics
Thanks to decades of experience servicing the food and beverage industries, at MSC we have the expertise to offer the very best services when it comes to shipping in this diverse industry.
Considerations when Shipping Food and Beverages
There are several factors that should be considered when shipping beverages, frozen food, and fresh goods. These include:
- Ensuring all your cargo is properly packaged ahead of shipping.
- Maintaining the correct temperature throughout transportation.
- Adherence to different shipping regulations and compliance standards.
- Tracking and monitoring your cargo.
Considerations when Shipping Food and Beverages
There are several factors that should be considered when shipping beverages, frozen food, and fresh goods. These include:
- Ensuring all your cargo is properly packaged ahead of shipping.
- Maintaining the correct temperature throughout transportation.
- Adherence to different shipping regulations and compliance standards.
- Tracking and monitoring your cargo.
Maximizing the shelf lives of different products is also crucial, particularly when shipping frozen food as this needs to arrive at its final location without being defrosted to prevent spoilage. Ensuring that your overall supply chain is running as smoothly as possible is a vital part of maintaining the quality and maximizing the shelf life of your fresh and frozen cargo. Enhancing your supply chain can be done in the following ways:
- Increasing the efficiency of your loading and offloading times.
- Selecting carriers that adhere to all food-grade transportation standards.
We understand that flexibility and scale are crucial for shipping cold food, beverages or fresh food successfully. By partnering with our team of experts when shipping these commodities, you’ll be working with a shipping company with the scale and experience to offer you the carrying capacity your business needs.
Tips for Shipping Food Internationally
Utilize Real-Time Communication Tools and Platforms
Utilizing Transport Management Systems (TMS) and online tracking tools with real-time communication systems allows for automated tracking and scheduling of door-to-door shipments. Not only can this help to reduce labour costs, but also enables better logistics and inventory planning throughout your supply chain.
Specialized Equipment Availability
Using specialized food shipping containers, whether it be dry, liquid, or reefer is vital to preserve the quality of your cargo. Working with a shipping company that can ensure you have access to the specific equipment you need for your shipment is highly important for planning your overall supply chain and preventing both wastage and loss of revenue.