New Zealand, Malaysian Fruits Reach Shanghai Residents Again as Logistics Recover
Jie Shuyi
DATE:  May 20 2022
/ SOURCE:  Yicai
New Zealand, Malaysian Fruits Reach Shanghai Residents Again as Logistics Recover New Zealand, Malaysian Fruits Reach Shanghai Residents Again as Logistics Recover

(Yicai Global) May 20 -- Fruits imported from New Zealand and Malaysia are coming back to family dining tables in Shanghai as foreign businesses in the locked-down city have gradually resumed operations since the start of this month, along with a recovery in logistics.

An official of Rockit Apple, a well-known New Zealand fruit brand, pointed out to Yicai Global that logistics in Shanghai have improved greatly compared with the initial stages of the city’s Covid-19 lockdown.

Rockit’s apples are already in normal circulation and have hit supermarket shelves as the number of vehicles with traffic permits available to essential suppliers has increased and the validity of the permits has been extended to more than seven days from two.

A trader in Malaysia that exports the country’s Musang King durians told Yicai Global that after a month and a half of stagnation, business has gradually picked up.

“Many of our logistics partners were on the city’s first ‘white list’ of companies allowed to resume work,” a company official said. “As a result, the frequency of shipments has gradually increased recently, but it is still below half the level of before the pandemic.”

At present, takeaway platforms and community buying are still the main ways for consumers in Shanghai to buy fruits from overseas, while brick-and-mortar fruit shops are expected to reopen in significant numbers this weekend, the Rockit official said.

The pandemic has brought dire challenges to logistics in Malaysia and China, but demand has not diminished, the durian trader noted. Group buying, promoted by the city during lockdown, has kept demand stable.

Overseas fruit businesses face higher logistics costs and are short-handed as they get back to resume. According to Rockit, many of its staff were still under quarantine control and the number of its logistics vehicles remains inadequate. Transport costs are also three to four times higher than a year ago.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Peter Thomas

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Keywords:   Shanghai,Covid-19,Imported Fruits