CO V E R S TO R Y
THE OCEAN VERSUS THE SKY: Which is logistically attractive to operators? For over a decade, cut flower
KENYA – GROWING FAST
transportation has revolved around
After listening to interventions from key players in Kenya during the IFTEX show, held in Nairobi this past June, we reached out to Carl Lorenz, managing director for Maersk in Eastern Africa. “If we were to calculate the number of containers needed to load a year’s worth of flowers from Kenya, we would be looking at about 90 million stems or 325 containers per week,” he said, adding that the main ports in Europe, where flowers are shipped to, are Rotterdam and London Gateway. However, there are hurdles to overcome, such as vessel berthing congestion and delays in EU and UK ports, often associated with weather, labour challenges, or other reasons exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet, they have dedicated staff to follow up on and correct these problems, as Maersk is aware of the clear need for a sustainable transportation option for cut flowers. Lorenz said, “The question is no longer whether the ocean will be a mode of transport, but how the industry can embrace the benefits of sea transport to ensure long-term market access.”
sea freight and whether it will replace air freight. Lower costs, lower carbon footprint and less cumbersome access to distant markets were essential factors in favour of sea freight. By 2019, everything seemed to indicate the flower industry would adopt this mode of transportation except for last-minute or unforeseen
AUTHOR:MARTA PIZ ANO
orders, which only airfreight could do.
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he Covid-19 pandemic changed everything, with closed borders, container scarcity, congested ports, and other logistic difficulties. Contrary to the initial expectation, demand for flowers surged, and exporters had to ship flowers by any means available. Everyone recalls how flower boxes were even strapped onto passenger seats. Sea transport nevertheless continued to be an option – even with increased prices - especially for sales scheduled in advance, such as supermarket bouquets. Sea transport is cost-effective and reliable; initial drawbacks for companies that could not fill up a container have been solved with cargo agents capable of consolidating consignments efficiently, and the carbon footprint is much reduced concerning air freight. We conducted a series of interviews to get an update on the current outlook for sea transportation of cut flowers.
FLOR ACULTURE INTERNATIONAL NOVEMBER 2022
MORE EMOTION THAN FACTS In the case of Kenya, key stakeholders from all fronts need to be involved to guarantee smooth operation. This includes government authorities in Kenya, the UK and the EU, retail traders in the EU, Dutch flower auctions, flower producers and logistics service providers. Furthermore, Lorenz noted, “Overall industry alignment is essential, and this requires a change in mindset
Skyrocketing air freight prices are driving significant momentum for sea transportation in East Africa.
