Freight firms deploy direct charters, sustainable packaging to keep MEA cargo moving
Petzer noted that as return logistics costs escalate in conflict zones, demand for sustainable single-use alternatives will accelerate.
SOUTH AFRICA – Freight forwarders and cold-chain packaging specialists are deploying extraordinary measures to sustain perishable exports from South Africa to the Middle East as regional conflict disrupts traditional transit hubs.
From direct charter flights bypassing Dubai to single-use recyclable packaging that eliminates return logistics, these innovations are preserving trade corridors while managing escalating costs.
Direct Charters Bypass Congested Hubs
JLOG International is finalizing direct charter flights from OR Tambo International Airport to Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, circumventing transit disruptions at Dubai International Airport that had threatened time-sensitive shipments.
The move follows urgent appeals from Driefontein Abattoir, a Karoo lamb exporter struggling to meet the 92-hour sanitary window for fresh meat deliveries to Jordan during the recent Eid al-Fitr period.
“The client we spoke to wants two to three flights per week for at least two weeks,” said Jonathan McDonald, managing director of JLOG. “We managed to secure a rate of about US$5.60 per kilo to Amman direct.”
That rate proved critical. Initial industry fears had projected costs reaching US$12 per kilo, a level McDonald said, “would have killed the market.” Despite jet fuel prices doubling since the onset of regional hostilities, the charter solution remains viable for exporters accustomed to US$2.50 per kilo under normal conditions.
Sustainable Packaging Eliminates Return Logistics
For pharmaceutical and high-value food shipments, packaging innovation is proving equally transformative. ESBD, a cold-chain packaging specialist, has developed a recyclable cardboard box solution offering five-day temperature validation without the logistical burden of returning expensive phase-change material containers.
“Because of what’s happening in the Middle East right now, the cost to bring back one of these PCM boxes is often the same as renting the box,” said Sean Petzer, ESBD managing director. “War requires medicine, and it’s a commodity that we specialise in protecting.”
The company’s water-based coolant replaces engineered substances used in traditional PCM boxes, delivering equivalent cold-chain integrity with kerbside recyclability. Petzer noted that as return logistics costs escalate in conflict zones, demand for sustainable single-use alternatives will accelerate.
Outlook: Resilience Through Innovation
For food industry investors and logistics leaders across the Middle East and Africa, these adaptations demonstrate how strategic resilience can sustain trade during geopolitical crises.
Direct charter corridors and sustainable packaging solutions are not merely contingency measures they are emerging as permanent tools for supply chain diversification.
Sign up HERE to receive our email newsletters with the latest news and insights from Africa and around the world, and follow us on our WhatsApp channel for updates.
