Many companies utilize LTL freight or truckload as a means of shipment for their food products. However, it is also true that LTL freight is costly and often have unpredictable schedules and smaller players in the realm of food logistics must use LTL since they cannot use FTL trucking due to limited shipment they have.
However, there is an option available nowadays in the form of 3PL and LTL consolidation, which can be used by small shippers to achieve desired goals.
LTL Freight Consolidation
The benefit of LTL consolidation provided by a logistic company is that shipment from multiple food logistic companies is combined into one. Such freight consolidation helps in driving down expenditure without having to depend on LTL carriers.
Still underutilized, concept of 3PL is gradually being accepted by shippers as they are realizing that even without freight volume, they have several options to utilize.
Benefits of LTL Consolidation
Distribution of Pool
Earlier food shippers need to separately get in touch with an LTL freight forwarding company when there was a need to ship products from one location to other. However, the situation changes when pool distribution is used. Here, shippers send their products to a consolidation centre which combines everything into a single consignment.
Even when goods are shipped to separate locations, it becomes possible to share the expenditure for the longest part of the transit to achieve significant cost savings.
Retail Consolidation
It is common for many shippers to ship to the same grocery and retail chains. In fact, 3PL agencies that specialize in food logistics utilize transport software for reviewing all pending orders, compare their destination points and arrival dates.
Such analysis helps 3PL providers in loading a single truck with orders from several vendors, where the retailer is the same. This way shippers benefit from cost cutting through consolidation, as well as time saved without compromising the volume of the freight.
Cost Cutting
Another benefit of third-party logistics or 3PL is that it lets shippers divide the freight expenditure between them. Moreover, it is estimated that shippers can achieve almost thirty-five percent cost saving when using 3PL compared to shipments which are not consolidated.
Analysis also shows that costliest miles tend to be the first and last fifty and LTL freight proves to be costly since in this type of shipment there are multiple first as well as last mile stops. By way of LTL consolidation, it becomes possible to combine multiple freights for creating low cost and direct shipments.
Summary
To conclude it can be said that there are several benefits of LTL consolidation and 3PL and results in considerable cost saving and time efficiency for any food transportation company.
Thus, if you are working in the food transportation business then apart from LTL, you must be aware of these other options which can be a lot more beneficial for your business.
