“Rates keep going higher and higher, adding difficulty to the already complex produce industry.”
Intergrow Greenhouses, a farming company located in Upstate NY, focusing on the production and sale of greenhouse-grown tomatoes, is thankful to have their own private trucking fleet to help service their customers. Stating the primary goal of their own fleet is to give the best possible service to top-tier retail customers. Understanding the importance of “On-time, In-Full” is fresh, perishable produce they have taken transportation into their own hands.
“When you contract a load through an outside broker or carrier you lose some of the visibility and control required to really deliver the best service possible. That’s why we’ve invested in our own fleet and in a freight market like this it has really paid off having the ability to run our own loads,” explains Dirk Biemans, President of Intergrow Greenhouses.
“Although we are close to major markets, there is a lot of freight needing to be moved in this area of the US and there is, and has been more demand than supply in the market. That’s why we are so grateful to be running some of our own trucks,” says Bill Cook, a 30yr transportation veteran, and current Logistics Manager at Intergrow Greenhouses. “During the peak season we have as many as 50+ loads a week shipping out of our facilities, of course, our own band of guys can’t handle that high volume, so they remain on our retail accounts, providing consistent and reliable transportation for the business.“
Currently expanding their business with another 10 acre greenhouse, Intergrow says they are first and foremost a grower and farmer but saw the need to deliver consistent quality service to their customers in order to grow their business. “Here at Intergrow we’re not only striving for the highest quality product but also reliability. Our customers need to have confidence we can deliver a premium product, reliably and consistently throughout the year.” says Kris Gibson, VP of Sales and Marketing “This last part of the puzzle, transportation, has really helped us grow these past years.”
Intergrow Greenhouses