OrtoRomi with Isco and Alì to improve the fresh produce supply chain

by Federica Bartoli

Improving the efficiency of the fresh food supply chain and reducing the environmental impact of logistics processes: these are the objectives of the established partnership between the OrtoRomi Agricultural Cooperative, an Italian player in the fruit and vegetable market, Ifco – a global supplier of reusable crates (RPCs) for the fresh food supply chain – and Alì, a large-scale retail company, with 117 stores across Veneto and Emilia-Romagna.

As part of their collaboration, the three companies joined forces to redefine logistics efficiency standards in the sector, designing a system to optimise the pooling flow of empty Ifco RPCs.

While, in the traditional pooling system, the crates used are processed and sanitised at Ifco service centres before being redistributed to suppliers, the new approach involves OrtoRomi filling them with fresh, pre-washed salads packaged in 100% recyclable bags made with a high percentage of recycled material and delivering them directly to the 117 Alì stores in the regions of Veneto and Emilia-Romagna.

Once the goods have been unloaded, OrtoRomi itself returns the empty crates to its production centres, avoiding the need to pass through the Ifco service centre. Since the salads are packaged and therefore do not come into direct contact with the packaging, the RPCs do not need to be sanitised until after many uses. Everything takes place in full compliance with the cold chain. The design of the reusable crates ensures that the salad remains fresh and crisp during transport.

The new pooling flow rationalises transport movements and drastically reduces the number of OrtoRomi lorries on the road, reducing collection distances from 179 km to just 23 km, as well as the related carbon emissions by a significant 94%.

“It is an important achievement for our company, but above all for the environment,” explains Luca Pallaro, OrtoRomi’s internal logistics contact. “Together with Alì and Ifco, we have created a valuable partnership that has enabled us to improve logistics efficiency in the distribution chain for our products. In particular, with the new system for supplying Ifco RPCs, we have achieved a considerable reduction in supply times and costs which, in terms of sustainability, translates into a significant reduction in Co2 emissions.”

This article was translated from the original Italian version with the assistance of artificial intelligence. In case of discrepancies, please refer to the original Italian version.