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London, England – February 11th, 2019 – Chiquita Brands International, the world’s leading banana company, has implemented a new, dedicated and integrated container service that sets an even higher standard to safeguard the premium quality of Chiquita bananas across the world.
The new logistic service will now operate five full-container vessels to transport bananas from Central America to Europe’s Vlissingen port in The Netherlands – a modern hub that will allow Chiquita to serve all Northern European destinations with the best transit time in the industry.
The investment in this new service will result in fresher bananas and a longer shelf life, thanks to new ultra-efficient containers that positively impact fruit quality by using software that automatically regulates the containers’ compressor thereby controlling the atmosphere. This will also result in a positive environmental impact, as consumption of CO2 has been reduced by 17,000 tons annually, as each new container is 50% more energy efficient than older models.
The new vessels have also helped to reduce the handling of fruit at ports and increased stowage capacity by 12.5%, thanks to a more efficient storage from origin to destination, guaranteeing the cold chain. These improvements will mean more bananas can be moved per trip, using less energy whilst still ensuring the fruit quality is prioritised.
“Looking back over these past years work with the container fleet upgrade, we can proudly say we have achieved something remarkable” said Carlos Lopez Flores, President of Chiquita. “We’ve saved an unprecedented amount of energy – the equivalent of the CO2 emitted by 3,000 cars per year.”
Stefano Di Paolo, President of the Great White Fleet, added; “On January 9th the first vessel in this new service left Central America to sail to the Port of Vlissingen, a new modern hub that will allow Chiquita to serve all Northern European destinations with the best transit time in the industry. Chiquita is proud to offer its clients the best service in quality, time and efficiency.”
Chiquita Brands International, known for its iconic Blue Sticker, is committed to working relentlessly to implement solutions for a more sustainable future.
For more information about Chiquita, visit their website at www.chiquita.com
Carlos Lopez Flores
Carlos Lopez Flores graduated with honors in Industrial Engineering; he has an MBA at the Krannert Graduate School of Management, Purdue University, Indiana, USA.
After covering different operational positions in Central America for Dole Food Company he joined Chiquita in 2003, covering roles of increasing responsibility within the Finance Department: Corporate Director FP&A in 2013, then global Vice President Finance in 2014 and global CFO of Chiquita in 2015. In late 2018 Carlos became Chiquita President.
Stefano Di Paolo
Stefano Di Paolo is a graduate in Economics. He spent his whole career in commercial and shipping related services, starting as commercial manager at Genova harbor and then covering different positions in the reefer services, particularly in the fruit sector.
He joined Chiquita in 2007 as commercial director for Italy and he largely contributed to the success of the brand in the country.
He is today president of the Great White Fleet, the shipping division of Chiquita Brands Intl.
