EVENT RECAP | The LCL Project, a Reefer Belt from Italy to China

Dear Members and Friends,

the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce is glad to announce that the webinar “The LCL Project, a Reefer Belt from Italy to China", organized by the CICC Logistics Working Group (LWG), together with the CICC Food and Beverage Working Group (FBWG), was held on October 19th, 2023.

The online meeting aimed at presenting the new end-to-end solution service that the CICC LWG, together with some of its professional members specialized in import procedures and transportation in China, came up with to facilitate the import of small reefer cargo not only for fairs/events, but also to test the market and regular supply chain needs. Service will be on a weekly basis and open to co-loading.  

The event featured Vicenzo Morano (Founder & Executive Director of InsiderChina and Vice Coordinator of the LWG) as moderator, Stefano Noe (Business Development Food Beverage Division at JAS), and Mario Tasso (Coordinator of the LWG and Global Account Manager Apac of JAS FORWARDING (CHINA) Co., Ltd.) as main speakers. who detailed the key advantages of the LCL service.

Unlike other services, which usually need the customers to reach a substantial amount of goods to fill a container and start the shipment process, LCL allows to ship smaller quantities of products via ocean freight (which is cheaper than airfreight) and to cut down costs.  Moreover, a variety of products can be included thanks to the dual temperature feature of LCL shipping containers: this feature allows the container to have two different temperature settings which broadens the variety of products it can carry, from cheese to wine and all kinds of frozen foods.

MAIN BENEFITS

• Regular and reliable service offered on a routine basis.

• Flexibility in consolidating any kind of food products in one single container.

• Enjoy cost savings through our in-house consolidation services and shipping solutions.

• Door to Door service: “Freshness DELIVERED at your doorstep”.

• Ocean freight LCL 60% less than airfreight.

• Multi-temperature facility from 0°C to +18°C at both consolidation and de-consolidation hubs & variety of transport temperatures: +2/+8 C°, +14 C° and -18/-20 C°

Following, Michele Taccetti (Managing Director of CHINA 2000 srl) and Nicola Trevisiol (Supply Chain Manager at Zhuhai Pinto Food Co.,LTD) shared their experience with exporting frozen foods and edible products that necessitate special shipping requirements in China. Among the main hardships they faced, they mentioned the difficulty in shipping smaller quantities of goods, especially when it comes to frozen food samples because of expensive prices and the difficulty in finding a reliable courier. Both deem the LCL service as very useful for their businesses. Given that logistics is the key when it comes to frozen foods, LCL will allow them to broaden the types of products they can send out in a single cargo, improving the efficiency of their business practices and helping them avoid unnecessary costs.

During the event, Marta Masetto (Head of Italy Trade Lane/China & Hong Kong At JAS) shared her experience with LCL shipments in Hong Kong: this type of service has been running for over 15 years and its success is given by the win-win situation it provides for both smaller businesses and the company itself.

According to Mario Tasso, thanks to the cooperation among the CICC Food and Beverage Working Group (CICC FBWG) and the CICC Logistics Working Group (CICC LWG) this reefer LCL service it is open to co-loading, which means that also the members of the LWG can benefit from it.

The coordinators of the two groups, Cristina Corsini and Mario Tasso, have delivered an overview of the past and future cooperation among the two groups, rising the bar of intergroup cooperation to another level to truly create a network where companies mutually support each other to achieve greater results.

About Logistic Working Group (LWG)

The LWG includes all the companies working in the logistics industry and it aims at promoting within the CICC the culture of logistics, which is constantly and rapidly evolving in China and around the world. With direct and targeted initiatives for members, aimed at informing them about market trends, ongoing regulatory changes in customs and taxation and more generally focused on transport logistics (air, ship, rail, dry and non-dry), Import & Export including specific initiatives such as the Silk Road Initiative.

About the Food and Beverage Working Group

The F&BWG Working Group includes all companies working in the F&B / Ho.Re.Ca sector, such as manufacturers, companies that import Italian products to China, Italian restaurants, etc. Despite being one of the most fragmented and challenged sectors, F&B represents an incredible opportunity for Italian companies. This is why the CICC has decided to establish a dedicated working group.