The Shanghai Airport Authority (SAA), the operator of Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, has launched an innovative initiative to ensure the swift delivery of seasonal fruit from around the globe.

SAA collaborates with Shanghai Customs to enhance global fresh produce logistics, ensuring that fruit reaches consumers' tables with unparalleled speed and freshness. [Photo/SAA]

By collaborating with customs, airlines, and freight forwarders, SAA guarantees the efficient transport of fruits such as cherries, bayberries, and lychees, as well as imported favorites like American cherries and New Zealand kiwifruit, which have become popular with consumers.

This initiative allows lychees from Guangzhou in South China to be harvested, flown to Shanghai in East China, and delivered to their destination in just nine hours. Similarly, American cherries can reach supermarket shelves and consumers' tables within a day of their arrival on direct flights.

In 2024, SAA's international aviation hub connected to 291 destinations across 48 countries. It supports 51 cargo airlines operating 58 international freight routes, with nearly 120 cargo flights daily reaching popular fruit-producing regions worldwide.

Companies like Eastern Air Logistics, China Cargo Airlines, China Southern Air Logistics, and SF Express have utilized the airport's extensive cargo capabilities to create rapid air transport lines for fresh produce, ensuring seamless linkage from farm to shelf.

Since the start of the fresh fruit season in May, SAA has facilitated the transport of over 2,000 metric tons of domestic fruit and nearly 600 tons of imported fruit. Upon arrival, the fruit is immediately sorted and stored in temperature-controlled facilities equipped with freezing, refrigeration, and constant temperature functions.

Temperature-controlled transport vehicles ensure that storage conditions are precisely adjusted according to the preservation needs of different fruits, enabling a seamless transition from tarmac to warehouse.

Shanghai Customs works closely with origin enterprises to prepare regulatory plans tailored to the characteristics of various fruits. Equipped with fruit quarantine experts and dedicated inspection rooms, the customs process is streamlined to allow for immediate inspection and clearance, ensuring rapid passage while maintaining safety.

Eastern Air Logistics has optimized the entire process from unloading to pickup by establishing dedicated counters for live cargo and simplifying document verification to reduce pickup times. The airport's cargo terminal offers 24-hour online reservations, real-time cargo status tracking, and electronic waybill declarations, allowing for the immediate departure and pickup of fresh fruit.

Departing fruit receives "VIP treatment" as well. SAA prioritizes their handling with "priority acceptance, priority loading, and priority boarding", offering 24-hour security checks and a dedicated green channel to expedite departures. This year, Hongqiao Airport achieved its first mass air transport of Xianju bayberries from Zhejiang province, ensuring that the fruit reaches markets nationwide within 24 hours of harvest. To date, 137 tons have been transported.