Season’s First Sea Shipment of Chilean Cherries Reaches China

December 18, 2019

Jing Zang

On the afternoon of Dec. 6, the first sea shipment to China of the 2019/20 Chilean cherry season arrived in Hong Kong. To obtain a first-hand account of this important event in the Chilean cherry calendar, Produce Report interviewed Jue Huang, deputy general manager at TIRECTION Group Co. Ltd. (泰星盛集团有限公司).

TIRECTION boasts over 30 years in supply chain management. According to Huang, the ship, Mol Benefactor 939W from Hapag-Lloyd, set out from Valparaíso on Nov. 13 and pulled into Hong Kong’s Modern Terminals at 3 p.m. on Dec. 6, carrying 31 shipping containers of cherries with Royal Dawn and Santina as the main varieties. Huang explained, “As our company spent a long time preparing for this arrival, we were able to be the first company to complete customs clearance for this shipment. The owner of the goods we operated this time was Shenzhen Qupai Fruit Co. Ltd. (深圳曲牌果业有限公司), which imported these cherries from San Francisco Lo Garces, the largest cherry producer and exporter in Chile.”

Owing to TIRECTION’s efficiency-oriented business philosophy, some of the cherries reached Guangzhou’s Jiangnan Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market, the largest market of its kind in China, only two hours after clearance. Huang considers that this speedy delivery represents a showcase example of how his company is able to bring its unique advantages in logistics infrastructure into full play.

*A vehicle from TIRECTION arrives at Jiangnan Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market only hours after the arrival of the first sea shipment.*

It is reported that approximately 10 containers of Chilean cherries from this shipment appeared that night at Jiangnan Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market and had completely sold out within a very short period of time. Port operations and the redistribution of these cherries were therefore not severely affected by the current situation in Hong Kong.

*The Chilean cherries became a hot product at Jiangnan Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market that night and were completely sold out shortly after arrival.*

According to Huang, the “Cherry Express” service, which reduces the sailing time between Valparaíso and Hong Kong from 27 days to 22 days during the peak harvesting season, will continue this year. These faster vessels are operated by Hapag-Lloyd, Hamburg Süd and Evergreen. The arrival of this first shipment is an important indicator that Chilean cherry exports to China will soon enter their peak. For December, seven vessels have been scheduled, while 12 are expected in January. The service will not end until Apr. 13, 2020, with a total of 36 shipments planned for this season.

Images: TIRECTION