HELSINKI, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- Finnish transport company Nurminen Logistics announced on Wednesday that it will start to transport temperature-controlled foods by freight train from northern Europe to China.
Nurminen Logistics claimed in a press release issued on Wednesday that it is the first in Europe to do such a business, adding that its temperature-controlled railway transportations and the unique refrigerated containers will provide new possibilities for food exports and imports of Finland and other countries.
"Earlier, it hasn't been possible to transport temperature-controlled products by railway. But now, our new reefer containers that are suitable for the train will change the situation," claimed Olli Pohjanvirta, interim CEO of Nurminen Logistics, in the press release.
Reliable and fast temperature-controlled railway transportations to China will take only 11 to 14 days, according to Pohjanvirta.
In addition to foods, other products requiring temperature-controlled conditions can also be transported in refrigerated containers by train.
The first temperature-controlled food transportation from Finland to China by freight train will start off at the end of this week, said the company. Nurminen Logistics's freight train travels from Finnish capital Helsinki to Hefei, the capital of eastern China's Anhui province, and from Norwegian town Narvik, via Helsinki, to Hefei every week.
Nurminen Logistics has already operated more than 100 container trains between Helsinki and Hefei, since the company launched the service in November 2018.
In the spring, when international transport was facing challenges and air cargo did not run normally due to the COVID-19 pandemic, railway freight volume between China and Finland operated by Nurminen Logistics hit record high by the end of March this year. Enditem