New perishable service extends from packhouse to supermarket

Ray Smuts HANDLING PERISHABLES is hardly new to transport and logistics provider Kuehne and Nagel which has taken its service offering one step further. "We have identified the need for supply chain management in the perishable sector," said Cape Town branch manager Lew Cumming, "and complemented it with our live KN login order on line system, which provides clients with a realistic picture of their cargo movement. "Whereas the company previously undertook exports to a warehouse alone, the new service extends from packhouse to supermarket," she said. Jim Landers, K&N's regional sales manager for UK/Southern Africa, says the company's expertise in perishables is bringing a host of new customers on board including major European supermarket chain stores. Appointed as perishables manager at K&N's Cape Town branch is Maggie Mostin who spent three years as export manager in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania . Durban-born, she has been in freight forwarding since the early 90s. Looking forward to working with what she terms "a dynamic young team with a strong operations background" (Ian Adams - perishables supervisor and Schoeman Buys), Mostin says the Cape Town perishable team is intent on doubling last year's figures. "This will be the first full year we are working with K&N's unique CIEL system which allows us to perform to a superior standard, especially given the sensitivity of perishables."