EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Global logistics provider C.H. Robinson is helping shippers navigate a surge in temperature-controlled freight leading up to Mother’s Day, with a combination of temperature-controlled air, truckload and less-than-truckload services, as well as a warehouse and distribution network that prioritizes freshness.
Nearly 70% of all flowers move during a three-month period spanning Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day, including 56 million pounds of fresh flowers delivered for Mother’s Day alone, according to a news release.
This causes a jump in truckload demand as high as 3,000% when compared to the rest of the year.
The surge in demand over a short period of time adds to the challenges shippers already face with a product that is globally sourced, perishable and relies on a limited supply of temperature-controlled transportation and storage, according to the news release.
C.H. Robinson says it moves between 7 and 10 million boxes of flowers annually across North America.
“A huge swing in demand for temperature-controlled capacity is not something many logistics companies could tackle,” said Mike Moyski, vice president of temperature-controlled and flatbed services at C.H. Robinson. “We are proud of our ability to quickly scale to meet our customers’ needs and reduce complexities that can lead to delays. With florals, the clock on freshness runs down quickly.”
The full journey of a Mother’s Day bouquet goes like this:
- Temperature-Controlled Air — Direct from the field, florals are delivered to one of C.H. Robinson’s Latin America facilities where experts are on the ground to support airfreight capacity from Latin America directly to Miami. Once picked, the flowers are immediately cooled to 34 degrees to prevent them from blooming and will remain at that temperature throughout the full journey.
- Refrigerated-Warehouse Processing — Once the florals depart Latin America, they are transported to a 50,000 sq ft. temp-controlled warehouse strategically located at the Miami International Airport (MIA). With 90% of all florals traveling through Miami, C.H. Robinson operates as the only freight forwarder with ramp access at MIA, allowing for swift transportation to keep floral costs down, and freshness up. At the inbound processing facilities, the stems go through customs, agricultural inspection and are quickly moved to C.H. Robinson’s floral facility where they undergo labeling, air-cooling and consolidation before shipping to their final destination.
- Temperature-Controlled Surface Transportation — After packaging, the florals are loaded from tarmac to truck where C.H. Robinson leverages its relationships with over 7,500 retail customers combined with its temperature-controlled network — the largest in North America — to distribute the flowers to locations across the nation.
- Enjoy — With approximately 23 million flowers sold on Mother’s Day, C.H. Robinson’s end-to-end floral logistics solution ensures retailers’ shelves are stocked, helping to celebrate mothers around the world.
“Last year floral sales surged to $8 billion dollars in the U.S. — up 48% since 2018,” said Jose Rossignoli, president of Robinson Fresh, a division of C.H. Robinson. “As the sector continues to expand, C.H. Robinson is excited to leverage our temp-controlled air, consolidation, and surface transportation expertise and scale to support that growth and our customers’ growth.”
Born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and raised in East Texas, John Worthen returned to his home state to attend college in 1998 and decided to make his life in The Natural State. Worthen is a 20-year veteran of the journalism industry and has covered just about every topic there is. He has a passion for writing and telling stories. He has worked as a beat reporter and bureau chief for a statewide newspaper and as managing editor of a regional newspaper in Arkansas. Additionally, Worthen has been a prolific freelance journalist for two decades, and has been published in several travel magazines and on travel websites.
