The appetite for these goods has led to new business opportunities for carriers and forwarders in some regions of the world that could be described as unexpected among the air cargo community. Here is a roundup of five such commodities and points of origin that have begun to turn heads:
Seafood from Scotland
Exports moving from Scotland to Asia have risen more than 400 percent since 2007, according to the industry group, Seafood Scotland. Among the types of seafood atop the list of goods are shellfish, salmon, whitefish and pelagic. Seafood now accounts for the largest rise — 26 percent, year-over-year — in ex-Scotland food shipments, said Natalie Bell, trade marketing manager for Europe, the Middle East and Asia at Seafood Scotland. Last year was a record year for Scottish food and drink exports, reaching £5.5bn ($7.3bn) — an 8 percent rise over 2015 and up 56 percent ahead of 2007. Of these totals, Scottish seafood accounted for about £759m ($1bn).
Smoked meat and wines from Australia
For wines, age is an asset — a rarity in the perishables community. But for vineyards and farms in Australia, a new direct route to Singapore by way of Canberra has shaved four days off the route that had been used most often, from Sydney to Singapore. The first shipment of local perishable produce — consisting of fresh bacon, smoked salmon and several types of wines — flew to Singapore in August via Singapore Airlines. The produce, travelling in refrigerated containers, was sent to international hotels, supermarkets and restaurants in Singapore.
