Lufthansa Cargo’s rosy mission

LUFTHANSA CARGO is airfreighted millions of red roses straight to the hearts of Europe.
Fully-laden MD-11 freighters imported some 1,000 tonnes of fresh-cut flowers for the huge Valentine’s Day demand on Thursday February 14.
The major countries exporting roses to Europe’s lovers are Kenya, Colombia and Ecuador.
Lufthansa Cargo serves all three of these nations, with several freighter services weekly from its Frankfurt hub.
For Valentine’s Day, normal frequencies on the route will be increased by several extra flights in order to accommodate the huge demand.
Fresh-cut flowers need to be transported fast and with extra care.
That’s one of the reasons Lufthansa Cargo has developed Fresh/td, a special product designed for the transport of perishable goods with an own-competence team taking care of the sensitive shipments.
The airline’s sophisticated logistics, with cooling systems in the cargo hold and, not least, the expertise of the growers in the exporting countries, ensure that the roses arrive fresh and perky at their destination.
Immediately after being harvested by the growers, the flowers are dispatched on the fastest route to be packaged and loaded straight into the holds of the cargo airline’s freighters.
Their transport to onward destinations across Europe is coordinated at the Frankfurt hub of Lufthansa Cargo.
Although they are transported by air, imported flowers are considered to be more environmentally-friendly than those cultivated in Europe, since the latter, according to a study from Britain’s Cranfield University, require artificial irrigation and heated greenhouses, which generate more carbon emissions.
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