CN, specialty-grain exporter enter agreement

   Canadian National Railway and food broker and logistics company Agri-Food Central said Thursday they have reached an agreement to improve the supply chain for specialty grains moving from Western Canada to Mexico via rail and to other markets including those in Latin America through Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coast ports served by CN.
   Agri-Food Central loads bags of lentils, canary seed, flax and peas into  53-foot containers at CN’s Winnipeg Intermodal Terminal.
   CN then hauls the containers by rail to Montreal, Vancouver and New Orleans for export, as well as to Mexico in cooperation with Kansas City Southern Railway. Containers are interchanged with KCS at Jackson, Miss., and return from Mexico loaded with consumer goods.
   The two firms agreed to exchange information that will allow them to jointly measure rail service and supply chain performance, to cooperate on joint supply chain planning, and establish a process to address any rail service issues.
   Agri-Food Central, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, is a supply chain management company whose clients range from primary suppliers to international buyers looking to vertically integrate and improve their existing supply chains. The company coordinates packaging of agri-food products in Canada and Mexico, and offers other services. It’s Winnipeg Distribution Terminal is located at CN’s Intermodal Terminal. In Mexico, the company has its own fleet of ocean-going containers and cleaning equipment for re-conditioning of grains and seeds as needed.