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| U.S-Canada begin truck pre-inspection pilot |
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Tuesday, June 18, 2013
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The United States and Canada on Monday began a limited demonstration program at the Blaine, Wash.-Surrey, British Columbia port of entry for pre-inspecting U.S.-bound trucks in Canada instead of on the U.S. side of the border, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced. The first phase of the pilot program is designed as a "proof of concept" to determine the viability of assigning CBP officers to Canadian border facilities to pre-inspect trucks, drivers and car...
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| U.S. exporters confused over Mexican tax regulations |
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Friday, June 14, 2013
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U.S. exporters are focusing their ire on the Servicio de Administracion Tributaria (SAT), Mexico’s tax agency for what they see as an increasing number of costly, time-consuming NAFTA audits and re-audits by the agency. These exporters say the current Mexican government had promised to streamline the audit process. “NAFTA rules of origin in this industry are very complex and require review of multiple levels of processing, which usually occurs at different com...
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| GAO checks in on nation's bridges |
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Friday, June 14, 2013
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Last year, one in four of the more than 607,000 bridges that dot the United States was deemed deficient and is either racked with structural issues or is so obsolete it isn't suitable for traffic. In a recent report, the Government Accountability Office found there has been some improvement to bridge safety — the number of deficient bridges has decreased in the past decade — but there are still funding issues. And the overall funding picture is murky at best. &nb...
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| Express carriers to help shape U.S. export policy |
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Monday, June 10, 2013
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The Express Association of America (EAA), representing the four largest integrated express carriers, DHL, FedEx, TNT and UPS, said it is forming an Export Committee to manage policy issues that effect shipping products from the United States. “Over the past year, the U.S. government has made significant changes to the export controls regime for dual-use items and also is discussing changes to the information requirements for all products being exported,” Michael Mullen, executi...
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| Damage collections for ISF non-compliance to begin |
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Monday, June 10, 2013
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection will begin full enforcement of the Importer Security Filing requirement on July 9, the agency announced Friday. On that date, the agency will begin to issue liquidated damages for ISF violations, such as filing incomplete, inaccurate or late documentation. The ISF rule went into effect on Jan. 26, 2009, but for the first year the program had no sanctions so that shippers and carriers could learn how to collect and file the ne...
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| Educating to prevent cargo theft |
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Thursday, June 06, 2013
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To combat the estimated $5 billion yearly cost of cargo crime in Canada, the Insurance Bureau of Canada and the Provincial Auto Theft Network have banded together to offer annual training sessions. Red Flags at the Roadside II, held Wednesday, focused on cargo theft prevention and investigation. Officials hope to deter criminals from Canada’s $65 billion trucking industry, which, according to a report from FreightWatch International, saw an 18-percent jump in theft between 2011 ...
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| Chairman: Collaboration key for global air cargo group |
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Wednesday, June 05, 2013
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As the new chairman of the Global Air Cargo Advisory Group (GACAG), Oliver Evans wants to build on the momentum created over the past two years and pave a clear path forward toward conquering new challenges. Evans, chief cargo officer of Swissport International Air Lines, assumed his new role when he recently took on the chairman position at The International Air Cargo Association. Atlas Air's Michael Steen served as the first GACAG chairman. GACAG, formed in 2011,...
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| U.S., France team up to stop fake electronics |
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Monday, June 03, 2013
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An enforcement blitz by U.S. and French Customs officials resulted in the seizure of 480 shipments of potentially harmful counterfeit electronic components, U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently announced. Operation Core Systems, conducted between Nov. 1 and April 30 targeted fake computer and electronic components such as semiconductors, computer networking equipment, hard drives and memory cards that often don't meet performance standards of the original equipment and ha...
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| Don't increase truck weight limits, group says |
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Thursday, May 30, 2013
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Truck sizes and weight limits should not be increased as a result of the Department of Transportation’s weight-limit study, according to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association. Officials from the organization made their thoughts clear during the DOT’s first public information session Wednesday in Washington on its comprehensive truck size and weight limits study, an analysis required by the MAP-21 bill. Three additional input sessions are planned. Attend...
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| U.S. gains upgraded ‘mad cow’ risk classification |
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Thursday, May 30, 2013
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The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) has upgraded the United States’ risk classification for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or “mad cow” disease, to negligible risk. “This is a significant achievement that has been many years in the making for the United States, American beef producers and businesses, and federal and state partners who work together to maintain a system of interlocking safeguards against BSE that protect our public and animal health,” sai...
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| Washington Notebook: 787 meets new battery standards, returns to skies |
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Tuesday, May 28, 2013
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Japanese airline ANA resumed flights over the weekend with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner for the first time since problems with the plane's lithium batteries led the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and other civil aviation authorities to ground the model from commercial service earlier this year, Randy Tinseth, vice president of marketing for commercial airplanes at Boeing, wrote in a blog post on the company's Website Monday. On May 20, United Airlines, the only U.S. carrier w...
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| Bank unveils financing tool for insolvent ships |
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Thursday, May 23, 2013
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HSH Nordbank, one of the world's leading shipping banks, said Wednesday it is has developed "an innovative financing solution for vessels, which are either in insolvency already or on the brink of filing for insolvency" together with the Navios shipping group. Navios Group's shipping companies, with financing assistance by HSH Nordbank, will buy five tankers that can carry between 30,000 dead-weight tons and 80,000 dead-weight tons as well as five container 2,000- to 3,400-TEU c...
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| EU adds 37 million euros to fight piracy |
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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
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The European Union will contribute 37 million euros ($47.6 million) to the Program to Promote Regional Maritime Security, which will boost the fight against piracy in Eastern and Southern Africa. The money will be used to develop the legal system in the affected countries, strengthen financial oversight systems that could prevent the flow of money to pirates, share expertise and training, and provide security support. Anti-piracy awareness campaigns will also be set up in Somal...
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| Association to certify truckers against trafficking |
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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
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The Truckload Carriers Association and Truckers Against Trafficking have teamed up to educate and train truckers on how to recognize and report sex trafficking, a crime that has been reported in every U.S. state. TCA will now start giving tests to truckers around the country so they can become a Certified Trucker Against Trafficking. The test is being given without any costs to the trucker and is based on a video viewable here . The organization will also pro...
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| World War II ships pose pollution threat |
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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
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The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration said Monday it had forwarded to the U.S. Coast Guard a new report about 36 sunken vessels scattered across the U.S. seafloor that could pose an oil pollution threat . Seventeen of the ships were recommended for further assessment and potential removal of both fuel oil and oil cargo by the agency. NOAA said "the sunken vessels are a legacy of more than a century of U.S. commerce and warfare. They include a bar...
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| Group calls for supply chain accountability |
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Friday, May 17, 2013
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A group of investors and stakeholders from more than 115 organizations have banded together under the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility to ask global shippers to ensure the safety and welfare of their workers and to ferret out supply chain abuses. The group has called on shippers around the world to implement International Labor Organization standards at all their facilities and to pay attention to the United Nation’s framework on human rights responsibilities in bus...
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| NTSB: Reduce legal limit to hinder drunk truck drivers |
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Wednesday, May 15, 2013
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After a year-long review of substance-impaired driving in the trucking industry, the National Transportation Safety Board has issued recommendations for reducing the legal alcohol driving limit; ramping up the use of interlock devices; and beefing up penalties for non-compliance. According to a NTSB report, the new legal blood-alcohol limit for drivers should drop from .08 to .05. While the American Trucking Associations commended the progress on these measure...
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| Congressman calls TWIC cards 'farcical' |
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Monday, May 13, 2013
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Transportation Worker Identification Credentials, or TWIC cards, were described as a “joke” during hearings before the U.S. House of Representative’s Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee last week. The hearings came as the Government Accountability Office issued a report that said 11 years after initiation of the program the Department of Homeland Security “has not demonstrated how, if at all, TWIC will improve maritime security.” G...
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| Raytheon cited for lax ITAR compliance |
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Wednesday, May 01, 2013
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Raytheon, a major international defense and aerospace company, will pay $8 million in civil penalties and remedial expenditures to resolve hundreds of alleged violations of U.S. export regulations designed to protect sensitive technology from falling in the hands of enemies. The State Department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, which oversees exports of military goods, said Raytheon violated the Arms Export Control Act and the International Traffic in Arms Regulatio...
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| Cargo theft in 2012 up in Europe, flat in U.S. |
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Monday, April 29, 2013
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Cargo theft in North America stayed flat, year over year, in 2012 as European theft rates rose by 24 percent, according to FreightWatch International. Cargo theft in Asia also increased. According to the company, however, the greatest theft threats still exist in Brazil, Mexico and South Africa. Last year, about 6,800 thefts were reported in Sao Paulo, and more than 6,000 Mexican thefts occurred in 2012. Pharmaceutical thefts are on the rise in Europe, ...
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| U.S., Nigeria sign customs accord |
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Wednesday, April 24, 2013
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Representatives from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Federal Republic of Nigeria have signed a Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement (CMAA), which allows for better cooperation between the two nations when investigating and preventing customs offenses. In addition to helping stop smuggling and prevent customs fraud, the agreement will help both parties accurately assess customs duties. U.S. Customs authorities, according to officials, will also be able to increase borde...
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| Unions, shipowners say some governments not investigating casualties |
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Tuesday, April 23, 2013
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Shipowners and seafarers' unions have joined forces to express concern at flag states’ failure to submit maritime casualty reports as required under international conventions. The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which represents 80 percent of the world merchant fleet, and the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), which represents seafarers’ unions worldwide, have made a joint submission to the International Maritime Organization commenting on the apparent f...
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| Ships relying on guards, not speed to fight pirates |
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Friday, April 19, 2013
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A report released this month estimates the cost of Somalia Piracy was around $5.7 billion-$6.1 billion in 2012, despite notable gains achieved by private armed security guards and aggressive naval activity. Some of this reduction appears to be coming as a result of shipowners deciding not to follow recommendations to speed ships up or reroute to avoid pirate attacks. The report, The Economic Cost of Somali Piracy 2012 , which is from Oceans Beyond Piracy, ...
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| Ex-Im Bank, Citibank renew supply chain guarantee |
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Friday, April 19, 2013
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The U.S. Export-Import Bank renewed a 90-percent guarantee of a $100 million supply-chain facility for Citibank to purchase invoices that are generated via the sales of goods and services by eligible U.S. suppliers to agriculture and construction equipment manufacturer CNH America (CNH). The authorization, which is Ex-Im’s second renewal of the facility, will support small-business suppliers of CNH by increasing liquidity to fulfill new orders. The facility is being provided un...
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| U.S. Customs opens 3 more CEEs |
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Friday, April 19, 2013
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Thursday announced the opening of new Centers of Excellence and Expertise for base metals in Chicago, industrial and manufacturing materials in Buffalo, N.Y., and machinery in Laredo, Texas, giving those industries the opportunity for smoother customs processing of imports and uniform enforcement. Also known as Industry Integration Centers, the virtual import processing centers are organized around specific industries and are designed ...
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| DHL prepares for new EU security rules |
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Thursday, April 18, 2013
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The transition period of new EU air security rules regarding known consignors ends April 29, and DHL is among the carriers that have been adding extra security programs to help shippers meet the new rules. Shipments from parties not identified as known consignors by the EU have to submit to extra screening of their goods before shipment. According to data released by DB Schenker last month, only a small number of air freight shippers the company works with have bee...
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| Petitions force Trendset into bankruptcy filing |
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Thursday, April 18, 2013
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Three customers of Greenville, S.C.-based freight payment and audit services provider Trendset filed petitions this week against Trendset in federal bankruptcy court. The customers - Husqvarna Professional Products, Legrand North America, DH Business Services – were among those affected by an embezzlement and fraud case that Trendset Chief Executive Officer Gary Selvaggio described in a letter to customers in late March . The case, Selvaggio wrote, involved a “trus...
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| White paper outlines benefits of produce traceability initiative |
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Thursday, April 18, 2013
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RedLine Solutions, a provider of inventory and supply chain traceability systems, has released a new white paper, “Beyond Traceability: The Benefits of the PTI” about the supply chain impacts of the Produce Traceability Initiative. Written by one of the primary architects of the PTI, Gary Fleming, the white paper details crucial supply chain and operational efficiencies that companies can gain by implementing the PTI and its ancillary tools. “Most companies fail to...
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| Commerce, State issue new export rules |
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Wednesday, April 17, 2013
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The U.S. Commerce and State departments have proposed a number of amendments to two export control guidelines, the Export Administration Regulations and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, to redefine the export of aircraft and associated munitions items as well as gas turbine engines. This is the first set in a series of final rules redefining the regulation of commercial items with military application, according to a press release. The State Department pegs ...
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| FDA’s 2014 budget request aims to boost food safety |
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Tuesday, April 16, 2013
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has asked for a budget of $4.7 billion to protect and promote the public health as part of the President Obama’s fiscal year 2014 budget, which was released last week. The agency said industry user fees would fund 94 percent of the proposed budget increase, including new fees to support the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and strengthen the FDA’s ability to oversee imported food. “The president’s budget proposes a fee to b...
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| GSF launches safety campaign |
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Monday, April 15, 2013
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The Global Shippers’ Forum said it has begun a campaign to enhance safety in the maritime transport supply chain. “While the vast majority of shippers comply with the rules, it is a regrettable fact that instances of mis-declaration and poor standards of loading and securing take place. Much of this is down to a lack of understanding of the rules and packing and securing know-how," GSF said. The forum has launched a series of "hands on" and easy-to-u...
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| NY/NJ port to pay $3.5 million for airport safety violations |
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Tuesday, April 09, 2013
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The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has agreed to pay the Federal Aviation Administration $3.5 million for aircraft rescue and firefighting violations at JFK, LaGuardia, Newark and Teterboro airports spanning from December 2010 to June 2012. The port authority has 30 days to pay the fine before incurring an additional $1.5 million fine and a daily fee of $27,500 for each violation. The port authority has also agreed to create a dedicated team to perform a...
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| S&P says ship operators face refinancing, default risks |
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Friday, April 05, 2013
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Global ship operators face significant refinancing and default risks as a result of tightening bank funding, enormous industry overcapacity, and depressed global trading conditions, Standard & Poor's said. A report published this week by the rating agency, Global Ship Operators Scramble For Liquidity To Stay Afloat , noted “ship charter rates have fallen in parallel with declining economic activity. High operating costs, particularly for fuel, are also eating into thei...
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| Analysis: Shippers need to do their homework on freight pay |
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Thursday, April 04, 2013
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The news this week that freight payment and audit services provider Trendset has been beset by internal embezzlement and fraud comes at a particularly interesting point in the evolution of the freight payment and audit industry. In March, the freight payment consultancy Quetica and law firm Balch & Bingham released a white paper that encourages shippers to perform due diligence when it comes to selecting an external freight payment and audit services provider. I...
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| Freight payment vendor Trendset rocked by embezzlement case |
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Wednesday, April 03, 2013
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The freight payment and audit services provider Trendset has alerted its clients to an internal fraud and embezzlement issue which could affect payments the provider was supposed to make on behalf of its shipper customers to their transportation carriers. Trendset Chief Executive Officer Gary Selvaggio said in a letter to customers last week, which obtained by American Shipper, that a “trusted employee” engaged in a fraud and embezzled funds from the company’s bank account...
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| U.S. to increase cattle, poultry and pear exports |
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Wednesday, April 03, 2013
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service today announced recent results of the agency's efforts to support exports of U.S. agricultural products, and they’re expected help increase exports of U.S. cattle, poultry products, and pears by over $85 million a year. APHIS noted the opening of export markets to Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia for U.S. day-old chicks and hatching eggs, increasing U.S. exports by an estimated $25 million a year. &nb...
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| Executive moves |
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Wednesday, April 03, 2013
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Ceres Marine Terminals has appointed Douglas Wolfe to vice president. He was formerly port manager in the Port of Baltimore and is a veteran of Ceres Marine Terminals in Baltimore for more than 25 years. Wolfe started in the maritime industry in 1976 and worked for Moore McCormack/U.S. Lines until 1987 when he was hired by Ceres as a terminal superintendent. The maritime security firm AdvanFort Co. has named Dimitrios Angelopoulos, a retired Hellenic Navy submarine ...
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| SAI buys food safety specialist |
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Monday, April 01, 2013
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SAI Global Ltd. has acquired the Steritech Group’s supply chain certification services, giving SAI more marketshare in the food safety assurance arena. Steritech’s services include auditing, training and other programs aimed at improving food safety. "We believe that our clients' supply chain certification needs will be better served by an organization with global reach and a broader service offering,” Steritech’s Chief Executive Officer Mark Jarvis...
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| CargoNet comes to TIA |
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Wednesday, March 27, 2013
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Verisk Crime Analytics has linked up with the Transportation Intermediaries Association to help collect and analyze cases of cargo and identity theft, offering its CargoNet program to members. The program uses a national database to share information among crime analysts. The company also offers recovery and deterrence measures, while promoting communication between victims and law enforcements. "Since its launch in 2010, CargoNet has made huge strides in hel...
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| EU lawmakers wary of proposed flight rest rules |
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Thursday, March 21, 2013
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Some members of the European Parliament see commercial concerns outweighing safe working conditions in the European Aviation Safety Agency’s proposed rules on flight and duty time limitations and rest requirements and have left open the door for a veto of the program. The Parliament recently asked European Commission Aviation Director Matthew Baldwin for further clarification about the new rules regarding stand-by, turnaround and on-call times. They also pointed out that U.S. ru...
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| NTSB to hold meetings on 787 fire |
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Friday, March 08, 2013
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The National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a forum and hearing in April to look into the viability of lithium ion batteries in airplanes. The agency also released an interim report of its ongoing investigation into the battery fire aboard a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight. NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman said the report provides a “window” into the agency’s ongoing investigation, which is being held concurrently with redesign and re-certi...
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| CBP, EPA stop unsafe shipments in LA |
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Friday, March 08, 2013
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on Tuesday stopped a shipment containing 445 counterfeit “Beats by Dr. Dre” headphones and 28 all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) that violated Environmental Protection Agency rules. The seized merchandise was valued at $171,499. "This seizure demonstrates the vigilance of CBP officers and partner agencies working together at the Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center (CTAC)...
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| Emergency drill at Alameda Corridor Sunday |
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Thursday, March 07, 2013
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This Sunday emergency response agencies around the port of Los Angeles and Long Beach port complex will conduct a full-scale exercise that will provide a “vivid depiction of a unified command working together on a simulated incident” inside the Alameda Corridor. The drill, which will take place between 9 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., will include the L.A. Fire Department, L.A. County Fire Department, Vernon Fire Department, Compton Fire Department, L.A. Police Department, L.A. ...
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| Delay in EU's known consignor rule |
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Wednesday, March 06, 2013
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The European Commission has delayed implementation of its known consignor rule, a new security law for shippers using air cargo out of Europe, from March 25 to April 29. Once the rule takes effect, only companies listed as known consignors can designate their air freight as secure. Status can be achieved by training employees about security in the supply chain and by enhancing other security practices. Firms that don’t submit to the new guidelines will see the...
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| DHS selects new COAC members |
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Wednesday, March 06, 2013
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has named eight new industry members to sit on the Commercial Operations Advisory Committee, including two experts from the air cargo sector. The 13th COAC convenes today in Washington for the first meeting of its new term. COAC provides policy-making advice about commercial operations to the secretaries of DHS and Treasury, but primarily works with U.S. Customs and Border Protection within DHS. DHS ad...
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| Sequester update: Impacts on CBP and DOT |
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Thursday, February 28, 2013
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Across-the-board funding cuts mandated to take effect on Friday would cut deeply into U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations, potentially doubling wait times from two to four or five hours for travelers and commercial trucks at air, land, and sea ports, agency leaders reiterated to industry trade associations in a conference call on Friday, according to one of the groups. In testimony on Capitol Hill earlier this month, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said t...
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| FDA starts cantaloupe packinghouse inspections |
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Tuesday, February 26, 2013
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will start inspecting cantaloupe packinghouses, specifically targeting Listeria, during the 2013 growing season to assess current industry practices and identify unsanitary conditions that may result in consumer health risks. The agency will also continue to target imported cantaloupes at the border for sampling and may “engage in other surveillance and inspection activities as circumstances warrant” to protect public health. &nb...
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| Long road ahead for EU-U.S. trade talks |
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Friday, February 22, 2013
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Members of European Parliament want to move forward aggressively with a trade deal between Europe and the United States, but see hard bargaining and tough choices ahead. While parliament members on the International Trade Committee said they were happy to be starting a dialogue, many of them pointed out significant differences in viewpoint between the European Union and United States that would need to be overcome. Public support, on both sides of the Atlantic, is...
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| New Website connects C-TPAT, AEO compliant shippers |
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Thursday, February 21, 2013
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Secure Shipper, a new Web-based exchange of U.S. Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism and Europe's Authorized Economic Operator compliant logistics companies, is striving to double its worldwide membership in 2013. Last month, Secure Shipper added Rotterdam-based Broekman Group to its membership, and it’s now hoping for at least 13 additional new members in 2013. The relatively new organization serves as a clearinghouse for overseas partners, giving U....
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| U.S. herd ‘negligible risk’ for mad cow disease |
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Thursday, February 21, 2013
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The Scientific Commission for the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) recommended Wednesday that the United States' risk classification for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or “mad cow” disease, be upgraded to “negligible risk.” "This is a significant achievement for the United States, American beef producers and businesses, and federal and state partners who work in coordination to maintain a system of three interlocking safeguards against BSE that protect our pu...
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| Diamond heist has 'significant impact' on Brink's |
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Wednesday, February 20, 2013
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Brink's issued a statement today confirming that an armed gang attacked a Swiss-bound Helvetic Airways plane at Brussels Airport on Feb. 18, stealing an unknown amount of diamonds. The Antwerp World Diamond Centre has put the value of the goods — both rough and polished stones — at $50 million. Brink's employees were loading the plane when the robbers struck, but no injuries were reported. Brink's had been shipping a portion of the diamonds that were stolen, but th...
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| Semiconductor maker uses Amber Road for screening |
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Wednesday, February 20, 2013
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The global trade management solutions provider Amber Road said Tuesday the semiconductor manufacturer Vishay Intertechnology has deployed its system to manage compliance risk. Specifically, Vishay is using Amber Road’s Restricted Party Screening (RPS) On-Demand solution, integrated with its SAP enterprise resource planning system (ERP). The RPS On-Demand solution allows Vishay to screen thousands of customers and vendors across the Americas, Eur...
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| Armed warehouse theft in Brazil |
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Tuesday, February 19, 2013
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At 11 p.m. on Feb. 16, 30 armed men forced their way into a warehouse in the Sao Paulo-based industrial park Centro Logistico Brasil, stealing an unknown number of tablet computers and smartphones, according to FreightWatch International. Analysts are calling it one of the largest thefts in Brazil. The suspects, who gained access to the building by masquerading as security guards, used nine cars and six trucks to make off with the goods. Intruders, who we...
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| Washington Notebook: Sequester spells delay for international commerce |
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Tuesday, February 19, 2013
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is preparing for the worst with the blunt tool of across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration, which is scheduled to kick in March 1 unless Congress acts to replace it with a more measured deficit-reduction package. In testimony last Thursday before the Senate Appropriations Committee, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the automatic budget cuts resulting from the 2011 debt-ceiling agreement would diminish border ...
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| Union finds holes in FAA's fatigue rationale |
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Thursday, February 14, 2013
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The Independent Pilots Association has found that the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration overstated the costs associated with applying its new pilot-fatigue rules to cargo carriers by at least $175 million. The FAA made a decision to not include cargo pilots in its pilot-fatigue ruling due to a perceived extreme cost. Not wanting to rely on the FAA’s cost benefit analysis, the IPA, which is the union for UPS pilots, hired a cost analysis expert who found the FAA’s benefit-cos...
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| IATA calls for security harmonization |
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Friday, February 08, 2013
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To make air cargo more secure, stakeholders need to achieve closer cooperation and current governmental regulations must be harmonized to prevent redundancies, according to the International Air Transport Association’s Chief Executive Officer Tony Tyler. In a speech during the organization’s Secure Freight Forum in Geneva, Tyler, who was pushing the organization’s Secure Freight program, also called for cooperation between nations and a long-term commitment among all ...
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| Japan considers armed guards to fight piracy |
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Monday, February 04, 2013
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The Japanese government is considering allowing foreign security contractors aboard Japanese-flagged vessels to carry firearms to combat piracy in the waters off East Africa, according to a report Monday in the Japan Times . Under the bill, drafted by the nation’s Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry, armed guards would be permitted to fire warning shots to deter pirates. Currently, vessels registered in Japan are prohibited from carrying such armed guards. ...
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| Produce shippers prepare comments for FDA food safety regs |
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Thursday, January 31, 2013
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United Fresh, a large trade group representing shippers of fresh fruits and vegetables, will host a series of stakeholder meetings in conjunction with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s public hearings on the proposed Produce Safety Rule and the Preventive Controls for Human Foods Rule. The first meeting will be on Feb. 27 in Washington, prior to FDA’s public meeting on Feb. 28 – March 1. United Fresh's meetings will provide opportunities for fresh produce industry stakeho...
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| U.S., Japan enter new beef trade agreement |
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Monday, January 28, 2013
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The U.S. and Japanese governments today have agreed on new terms and conditions which open the door for expanded exports of U.S. beef and beef products to Japan. Under these new terms, effective Feb. 1, Japan will permit the import of beef from cattle less than 30 months of age, compared to the previous limit of 20 months, among other steps. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said “these important changes will result in hundreds of millions of dollars in exports o...
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| Armed thieves steal pharmaceuticals |
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Wednesday, January 23, 2013
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Cargo security firm Freightwatch International said a suspect hijacked a last-mile courier load of pharmaceutical products at gunpoint outside of a pharmacy in Detroit on Monday morning. The load was being monitored by a FreightWatch covert GPS tracking device as well as an on-person panic device that was with the driver. During the hijacking, the thief took the panic device before the driver was able to activate it and commandeered the courier van contai...
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