Skretting, the Norway-based global leader in aqua feed and nutrition, inaugurated its state-of-the-art production facility for shrimp and fish feed in Mangrol, Surat. The high-end facility allows Skretting to further enhance support for its customers and the Indian aquaculture sector. Spread over an area of 20,000 sq mt and built with an investment of EUR 18.5 million (Rs. 165 crore approximately), the facility will cater to both shrimp and fish cultures. The shrimp cultures will include white tiger and black tiger, while fish cultures will include Indian major carps, and high-value fish like snakehead, seabass, etc. The Mangrol facility has three production lines with a production capacity of 50,000 metric tonnes per annum. It will produce both extruded/floating and pelleted/sinking feed as per the requirement of the species and customers. There is also adequate land and infrastructure available to increase production capacity in the future. The facility was inaugurated by Dr. Sanjeev Balyan, Hon’ble Minister of State of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, and Michiel van Erkel, Agriculture Counsellor for India and Sri Lanka, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Focusing on various industry issues such as Customs, Taxes, CBLR, EDI, Port & Shipping, Costal/Inland Waterways, ICDS and airports, the Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Associations in India (FFFAI) held its 12th Executive Committee (EC) Meeting in Ahmedabad recently. The meet, hosted by Ahmedabad Customs Brokers Association, was attended by the Office Bearers of the Federation and representatives from 30 Member associations from across the country. Majority of Policy recommendations were made to highlight for Customs trade facilitation measures under ease of doing business, infrastructure development and Digital transaction. Also focus was given on the training and development in logistics sector, which initiatives shall be carried by the FFFAI – IIFF (Indian Institute of Freight Forwarders) with e-learning introduction and FIATA Diploma courses. Also presentation on ‘Business Continuity Planning’ focusing on Best Practices guidelines for the benefits of the members was made by Samir J Shah, Advisor FFFAI, which highlighted to cope with future challenges. Shankar Shinde, Chairman, FFFAI highlighted the initiatives of International Customs Day dedicated theme by World Customs Organization (WCO) in Brussels 2023 on “Nurturing the next generation: promoting a culture of knowledge-sharing and professional pride in Customs.” This is a theme close to the IFCBA and its members around the world, as Customs experts and Customs practitioners. “FFFAI will be happy to take this forward to benefit the trade members to professionalize the Logistics Industry.” said Shinde. He also pointed out that the recommendations made to the Ministries, Government departments and stakeholders will be helpful to the trade in reducing cost and dwell time.

Hermes Travel and Cargo Pvt Ltd has successfully achieved its GDP Certification IN23/00000103 through SGS. The company has been assessed and certified as meeting the requirements of World Health Organisation Goods and Distribution Practices. “As a company, we stand committed to delivering superior and compliant services to our pharmaceutical clientele in India and across the globe. This certificate will further enhance our already prominent market position in this vertical. We thank all our esteemed customers who have been part of our growth story, entrusting us with their shipments. Continual improvement is need of both – The Customer and Business,” the company announced the news on Linkedin.

Air Canada Cargo has become a member of the Pharma.Aero cross-industry collaboration platform to further develop its pharmaceutical shipments handling knowledge. Founded in 2016, the Pharma.Aero platform includes over 50 Life Science and MedTech manufacturers, cargo pharma-certified communities and other logistics stakeholders. “As we continue to expand our freighter fleet and with the continued enhancements to our cold chain handling capabilities, this participation in a new avenue for critical insight into pharmaceutical shipments is an important step forward,” said Matthieu Casey, managing director – commercial at Air Canada Cargo. “Pharma.Aero will increase our ability to collaborate with an ever-growing list of industry experts to share ideas and gather knowledge on ways to further strengthen our expertise in shipping this vital cargo.”

Air India on Tuesday announced a 470-aircraft order with Airbus and Boeing, including 260 widebody planes, the largest order ever from any Indian airline and among the largest globally. The airline had last placed an order for aircraft 17 years ago and this is the first since the carrier’s sale to Tata Sons. The order comprises 40 Airbus A350s, 20 Boeing 787s and 10 Boeing 777-9s widebody aircraft. The narrow-bodies include 210 Airbus A320 and 321 Neos and 190 Boeing 737 MAX single-aisle aircraft. The A350 aircraft will be powered by Rolls-Royce engines, and the B777 or 787s by engines from GE Aerospace. All single-aisle aircraft will be powered by engines from CFM International. The last order from the airline was in 2006 when it signed a deal for 68 Boeing and 43 Airbus aircraft.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has allowed the transshipment of Bangladesh export cargo to third countries through Delhi Air Cargo. Following representations from interested parties, the Board decided to amend Circular 29/2020-Customs, dated June 22, 2020, to allow the transshipment of Bangladesh export cargo to third countries via Delhi Air Cargo. Transhipment of goods by road from LCS Petrapole to Air Cargo Complex, Delhi is also allowed with effect from February 15, 2023, following the procedure prescribed in the aforesaid Circular, until further direction from the Board,” the amendment read. The Circular allows inter alia transshipment of Bangladesh export cargo through Kolkata Air Cargo. The goods loaded on containers/closed-bodied trucks enter India from LCS Petrapole, and move by road to Kolkata Air Cargo, from where they are airlifted and transported to third countries. It has been road to Kolkata Air Cargo, from where they are airlifted and transported to third countries. It has been represented to allow this movement through Delhi Air Cargo also, for better cargo evacuation and improved logistics efficiency.

Netradyne, a SaaS company, signed an agreement with Transystem Logistics, an integrated supply chain and logistic solutions provider for the automobile market in India to deliver a complete fleet safety solutions package. Transystem Logistics is a joint venture between Mitsui and Transport Corporation of India (TCI). With a large number captive and non-captive fleets, Transystem offers customised logistic solutions to some of the biggest OEMs in India and works on the Japanese principles of maximizing efficiency and time. In addition to optimising operational costs, Transystem is prioritising on improving driver safety by monitoring trips and providing real-time alerts. Durgadutt Nedungadi, Vice President – International Business, Netradyne, said, “We are honored that Transystem selects us to support their vision of reducing road fatalities and improving operational efficiencies. Driver•i provides monitoring and driver coaching, which leverages our state-of-the-art AI-enabled safety technologies.” Sagar Agarwal – SVP, Transystem Logistics Said, “Using Netradyne to support our fleets on the road encourages driver safety behavior. Further, linking incentives to performance summary reports encourages safety practices, thereby reducing exposure to accidents and amplifying our overall quality of services.

Cathay Pacific Cargo and the Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal have become the first carrier and first cargo terminal operator to have cargo shipments accepted in Dongguan and transported to Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) by ship for outbound airfreight, enabling full upstream sea-air intermodal export cargo handling between the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and Hong Kong. The HKIA Logistics Park in Dongguan, developed by the Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK), enables shipments to be security screened, built up and accepted as cargo for flights before being loaded on ships that unload in a secured area at HKIA, from where pallets and ULDs can be towed straight to a waiting aircraft. The pilot scheme’s base will migrate to a permanent facility from 2025. Cissy Chan, executive director, commercial of AAHK, said: “The HKIA Logistics Park with sea-air intermodal connectivity to HKIA aims to reinforce HKIA’s role as the international air cargo hub in the GBA.” CPSL is the first cargo terminal operator (CTO) to sign an air cargo service agreement with AAHK to operate in the pilot scheme, and has established what is believed to be a first of its kind upstream bonded facility – Cathay Cargo Terminal Dongguan – located at the Bestar Logistics Centre in Dongguan. “We have been actively engaged in the downstream trials of the service over the past year and are delighted to be the first CTO to have provided full upstream acceptance of intermodal cargo in Dongguan,” said terminal operator Cathay Pacific Services Ltd chief operating officer Mark Watts. “By extending our air cargo handling services to Dongguan, we are able to offer more choice and more value-added services for our customers, as part of …

Conqueror Freight Network successfully concluded its 9th Annual Meeting, which took place in Doha, Qatar, from 6th to 8th February 2023. The conference, which took place after a gap of three years because of the pandemic, allowed the network members to carry on constructive business discussions and do the groundwork for lucrative concerted projects. Antonio Torres, President and Founder of Conqueror freight Network, opened the inauguration with a welcoming speech, followed by a short presentation about the new updates of Conqueror’s exclusive TMS, given by Andrea Martin, FreightViewer Coordinator. Afterwards, the delegates participated in almost 3000 one-to-one meetings with their chosen partners to make way for collaborative business endeavours. “In the last three years, Conqueror has grown considerably, and we have retained our position as the largest exclusive logistics network in the globe. Conqueror’s 9th Annual Meeting allowed us to promote a sense of trust and bonding within our network, which will surely boost the collaborative endeavours of our members. Most importantly, our members were thoroughly satisfied with the meeting and are sure to return to their respective cities with plenty of new business prospects in hand,” says Mr. Antonio Torres, Founder, and CEO of Conqueror Freight Network.

Welspun One Logistics Parks (WOLP), has signed a pact with the Uttar Pradesh government to set up warehousing facilities and logistics parks in the state at an investment of ₹2,000 crore. The company said it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP) to broaden its presence in the warehousing sector in North India. The MoU was signed at the UP Global Investors Summit 2023 which was held on 10-12 February 2023 in Lucknow. Uttar Pradesh is aiming to be a $1 trillion economy, and the logistics and warehousing sector has been identified a priority sector to help achieve this target. “Welspun One seeks to effectively utilise government and private land parcels in Lucknow for the construction of Grade A warehouse facilities and logistics parks. WOLP would invest ₹2,000 crore in the state of Uttar Pradesh with the support of this association,” the company said in a statement.