CHEP Announces Contract Extensions

Oct. 25, 2010
Frey Farms Produce, S. Martinelli & Company, and Barilla America, Inc., each extended their service contracts with CHEP, the pallet and container pooling company.

Frey Farms Produce, an apple juice and sparkling cider company near Mt. Vernon, Ill., moved from limited-use, non-pooled pallets, known as “white wood,” to the CHEP pallet pooling program primarily to address cost issues. The fresh produce company also wanted to meet customer demands for a high-quality, reliable shipping platform.

Barilla America, global providers of pastas and sauce, cited improvements in procurement costs, along with standardization within Barilla operations, which have led to improved efficiencies.

S. Martinelli, Watsonville, Calif., also mentioned cost savings targets in switching from white wood pallets, but also stressed the need for an environmentally sustainable shipping platform that would reduce product damage. The company has reduced solid waste generation by approximately 146,000 pounds, decreased greenhouse gas emissions by more than 110,000 pounds, saved enough energy to power 83 households for a year and avoided using about 450 cubic yards of landfill space (according to lifecycle inventory analysis from Franklin Associates titled Solid Waste Analysis and Life Cycle Inventory of Pallet Systems).