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ELDs forcing greater efficiencies for Taylor Farms and other suppliers

(Photo: Shutterstock)

Over the next year, Taylor Farms, a leading producer of value-added healthy fresh foods, will be leveraging the rapid expansion of more than 150,000 square feet of refrigerated space in Laredo, Texas. This additional space gives the company the ability to store and refrigerate a more diversified product mix from a variety of industry leading growers and shippers. The model is built around high inventory turnover to capitalize on the freshness of Taylor Farms’ products and other fruits and vegetables as well.

“Providing solutions to increase efficiencies and lower costs for our customers is one of our top priorities. The ability to consolidate Taylor Farms’ products with fresh produce from other suppliers in a centrally located region in the middle of the U.S. creates a unique opportunity to save time and money,” Luis Amaral, Mexico Business Manager of Taylor Farms, tells FreightWaves.

Through collaboration with other best-in-class suppliers, Taylor Farms continues to develop a platform that creates substantial value for the company’s customer partners. This new consolidation program, not only adds convenience and freshness but it also mitigates some of the impacts of the newly implemented ELD law that will be 100 percent enforced on April 1, 2018.

“The ELD mandate is just another factor,” says Amaral.

“It’s a three-pronged approach: a convenience factor, a single supplier in the middle of the country; the second is freshness (our product is highly perishable so how can we get full truckloads); and a unique opportunity with the ELD mandate.”

Given the perishability of fresh produce, every second counts. The benefit of the consolidation program will reduce time and increase efficiencies by eliminating the need for trucks to conduct multiple pick-ups. Ultimately, this will maximize the utilization of the carriers legal driving hours by reducing wait times.

So are ELDs actually helping with the process? “The one positive spin, and this may be a stretch,” says Amaral, “but it makes this distribution model a little more enticing to our drivers. Consolidation helps with suppliers and carriers as well. If this helps take off 60 minutes from a drivers’ time it could save up to 25 extra days of driving per year as a result.”

“Hopefully not only a win for us, but also in collaboration with carriers as well to hopefully get more bang out of their buck,” he adds.

“Taylor Farms continues to work hard to enhance the value they bring to their partners,” said Chris Ford, Manager, Produce Purchasing at Darden Restaurants. “The development of this new consolidation model will allow for fresher product at a competitive rate, while eliminating multiple picks from various suppliers.”

Taylor Farms continues to align with industry leading suppliers to provide customer partners with even more value, convenience and a strategic solution to an industry-wide challenge.

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