A cold chain will link Moscow with China

FESCO Transport Group (FESCO) and the Russian Export Centre (REC) have agreed to arrange and promote a new service called ‘Meat Shuttle’ that would ship Russian meat products to China and South-East Asia (SEA). The parties signed a cooperation agreement on March 19.

In addition to allowing meat producers in different regions of Russia to send their products to China and SEA countries without changing refrigerated containers along the entire route, Meat Shuttle is also expected to reduce delivery times since intermediate points will not be overloaded.

This service will be operated by Dalreftrans, a FESCO’s division responsible for shipping temperature-sensitive cargoes. According to the parties, the service will provide customers access to the key intermodal and overland routes to China that FESCO runs - via the ports of Vladivostok and St. Petersburg, as well as overland border crossings. Thanks to the partnership between FESCO and REC, Meat Shuttle customers will be eligible for a 25% compensation of transportation costs under the state-supported program of transportation of agricultural products.

Furthermore, the parties intend to draft a roadmap for integrated route development in the future, as well as to implement a seamless documentary clearance process for meat products shipment from Russia to China.

The Chairman of FESCO’s Board of Directors, Andrey Severilov, believes that the new logistics solution will prove to be relevant and in demand, and will contribute to the growth of exports for Russian agricultural products.

This project is more than merely a logistics endeavor; it also includes state-level support allowing exporters to be reimbursed up to 25% of their transportation costs, explains Veronika Nikishina, REC’s Director General. Through these joint projects in collaboration with the biggest players in the transport services market and the country's largest exporters, we have demonstrated our ability to adapt to changing global trade conditions, while offering Russian manufacturers favorable logistics solutions and ensuring a continuous cold chain operation. I believe that with the opening of the Chinese pork market, Meat Shuttle will be in high demand among Russian meat exporters winning them a solid niche in the target market”, - said Veronika Nikishina. You will recall that the General Administration of Customs (GAC) of the People's Republic of China last year lifted a 15-year ban on the import of pork from Russia. In December 2023, a Protocol was signed between Rosselkhoznadzor and the GAC on inspection, quarantine and veterinary and sanitary requirements for pork exported from Russia to the PRC, and a corresponding veterinary certificate was agreed upon.

At the end of February 2024, the Chinese competent authority certified three Russian enterprises to supply pork from Russia to China. Sk Korocha (a part of Miratorg Agro Holding Company), Tambovsky Bacon (a part of Rusagro Group of Companies) and Velikoluksky Meat Processing Plant received the right to export.

As early as March 7, Rosselkhoznadzor supervised the shipment of the first 27-ton batch of Russian-made pork by-products to China from the Moscow region. Dalreftrans is handling the shipment.

The batch of pork produced in the Belgorod region was delivered by the customer to the railway station of Selyatino (Moscow region), where the carrier's refrigerated container storage warehouse is located. From there, the meat products in a container train went to Vladivostok Commercial Sea Port (part of FESCO), where a 40-foot refrigerated container with pork will be reloaded onto a vessel and sent to the Chinese port of Nansha by the FESCO China Express regular sea line. The products are scheduled to arrive in China on April 11 within a total delivery time of about 35 days.