How do I ship perishable goods from Africa?
With perishables, a delay is not an inconvenience but a write-off. Everything about the process is designed around that fact.
Choosing air or sea
Short shelf-life produce, cut flowers, fresh herbs, delicate vegetables, moves by air, where transit is measured in hours and the freight premium is justified by the product surviving at all. Longer shelf-life cargo such as avocados travels in refrigerated containers by sea, where the cost per unit is a fraction of air and the extended transit is manageable with correct temperature control.
The decision follows from the product's post-harvest life and the destination, not from freight cost alone.
The cold chain has to be unbroken
Temperature control must run continuously from packhouse to destination. The vulnerable points are predictable: pre-cooling immediately after harvest, transfer from truck to terminal, time on the apron or quay awaiting loading, and the handover at destination. A break at any one of these can compromise a consignment whose paperwork is otherwise perfect.
Pre-cooling to the correct temperature before loading matters more than most exporters expect, because a reefer container is designed to hold temperature rather than to pull it down from ambient.
Packaging is functional, not cosmetic
Packaging must permit airflow, resist crushing under stacking, and suit the specific commodity, since ethylene-producing and ethylene-sensitive products cannot travel together. Destination markets often specify carton dimensions and labelling, and non-compliant packaging can be rejected at the point of sale even when the produce is sound.
Documentation has to be ready before departure
Perishable consignments require phytosanitary certification, destination import permits where applicable, and often pre-notification to the receiving authority. Because these have lead times and inspection appointments attached, they must be arranged before shipping. There is no opportunity to resolve a missing certificate while the cargo waits.
Pre-clearance is the whole game
A customs hold that would merely be irritating for dry cargo destroys a perishable consignment. Lodging entries in advance at both ends, confirming that the destination clearance agent has complete documentation before the goods depart, and arranging priority handling are what separate a routine shipment from a total loss.
Match the buyer to the logistics reality
Perishable exporting only works when the buyer can receive, clear and distribute quickly. A buyer without cold storage or clearance capability is a risk to the consignment regardless of how well you handle your end, which makes buyer capability part of the logistics assessment rather than separate from it.
We design cold chain routing, arrange certification ahead of departure and pre-clear at both ends so perishable consignments arrive saleable.