22 April 2010 - Ulises Carillo, Vice President Global Logistics for Dole Food Company, Inc. is the latest speaker to confirm his participation at the 3rd Cool Logistics conference, taking place 20-22 September at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Hamburg. 

Carillo will join a special panel on the afternoon of 21 September where shippers of fresh produce, meat, fish and health products will discuss lessons learned from the global downturn and implications for future perishable logistics and transport management.  

“We are very pleased to have secured the participation of such a major multinational company involved in sourcing, growing, processing, distributing and marketing fresh produce,” said Rachael White, Event Director for Cool Logistics.  As the world’s largest producer and marketer of fresh fruit and vegetables, Dole does business in more than 90 countries and markets over 200 product lines.

One of the company’s core competencies is its ability to produce, transport and deliver perishable product around the world. In addition to controlling 131,000 acres of farm land and other land holdings, including a plantation in the Philippines and a packing plant in Thailand, Dole owns and charters ships and controls a fleet of nearly 15,000 dedicated reefer containers.  

Also newly confirmed to speak is Phillip Symons, Category Buyer Fresh Produce for UK-headquartered retailer Marks & Spencer plc. With close to 900 stores around the world, Marks & Spencer is not only the UK’s largest clothing retailer, but also an upmarket food retailer with a high visibility brand name.  

Symons joins Dr Horst Lang, head of quality assurance at German independent retailer Globus SB-Warenhaeuser, to discuss fresh food retail sourcing strategies in the opening conference session on Global Trade and Responsibility. 

“Global sourcing of fresh produce will be high on the agenda for 2010, both in terms of how public sensibilities regarding sustainability and responsible trading are influencing retail strategy and how ‘provenance’ is likely to impact investments, quality and ultimately the profitability of the cold chain as a whole,” White added. 

The agenda for the 3rd Cool Logistics conference is now live online at www.coollogisticsconference.com. As the annual forum for the global perishable transport and logistics industry, the event brings together stakeholders from production to retail to provide a unique 360o perspective on business challenges and opportunities along the cold supply chain.  

Cool Logistics 2010 is officially supported by Port of Hamburg Marketing and has also gained the support of a number of prominent industry groups, including the Shippers’ Voice, German Cold Storage and Logistics Association VDKL. Current sponsors include Thermo King, Mark-IT, Johnson Controls, Daikin and Carrier Transicold. 

The conference programme is being developed in close co-operation with an international advisory group of perishable logistics suppliers and buyers.  Advisors for 2010 include Alfred Cheung, Managing Director, ZIM Integrated Shipping Services (Japan) Ltd; Malcolm Dodd, Innovation Programme Manager at South Africa’s Fresh Produce Exporters Forum; Axel Guenther, Consultant for Lufthansa Cargo AG; Alex Schenz, Division Manager for New Zealand fruit producer Applemax; and Michaela Steineker, Global Reefer Co-ordinator for Hamburg Süd. 

For full details including online registration, visit  http://www.coollogisticsconference.com.  

Ends 

For more information: 

Rachael White
Event Director
Tel +44 20 8279 9403
rachael@nextlevelinfo.com 

Alex von Stempel
Event Director
Tel +44 20 8744 0244
alex@freshwaterlogistics.com 

NOTES TO EDITORS  

Cool Logistics is a joint venture between Freshwater Logistics Ltd and Next Level Information Ltd. The current event is the 3rd Annual Conference produced under the Cool Logistics banner.  

Established in 1999, Next Level Information provides event management, conference production, marketing and public relations services for two core sectors - global maritime logistics and transport and the UK healthcare services market. Company founder and managing director Rachael White has been involved in the logistics and transport field for over 20 years as journalist, editor, industry association secretary and producer of major industry conferences.  

Freshwater Logistics was founded in 2007 by Alex von Stempel to provide market intelligence to the global logistics and transport industries. Alex has over 23 years’ experience as an industry commentator, journalist, editor and producer of leading industry conferences, including a number of specialist events in the refrigerated logistics and transport sector.