Challenge
“Logistically, we needed to understand how we could move product outside of the state. We’re located in upstate New York and wanted to expand our product reach.
- Kevin Richardson
Co-Founder/EVP Sales and Operations
Solution
“C.H. Robinson helped us get product from upstate New York into the mid-west and down South and gave us an understanding of third-party carriers to deliver our micro-greens quickly into these new geographies.
- Kevin Richardson
Co-Founder/EVP Sales and Operations
Results
Agbotic micro-greens are now available in retail stores in 25 states from New York through the mid-west and down to Florida. C.H. Robinson and Agbotic would jointly to forecast, replenishment and transport products across the U.S. and look forward to growing together into new geographies.
“Robinson has been extremely supportive and has helped us understand the forecasting piece of our business allowing us to ship to numerous distribution centers.”
- Kevin Richardson
Co-Founder/EVP Sales and Operations
“The support and service that Robinson gives to their partners is excellent – they go above and beyond.”
- Kevin Richardson
Co-Founder/EVP Sales and Operations
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Agbotic’s mission is to build a smarter, brighter farm future with roots and robots. Their SmartFarm platform honors nature and serves humanity with responsible technology. GoodHealthy products are grown organically and are packed with nutrients.
Logistics education
Located in upstate New York, Agbotics primary market was the Northeast. As demand started to grow for their popular micro-greens, Agbotics needed to establish supply chains in new markets to enable sales with new retailers.
“We didn’t know the logistics piece – the replenishment, the fulfillment, the forecasting elements of moving products to new geographies. C.H. Robinson has allowed us to get our products into the hands of consumers from Chicago, Illinois down to Daytona, Florida.”
C.H. Robinson and Robinson Fresh have been helping growers bring their fresh products to retail grocers across the United States for over a century. With the largest temperature-controlled network in North America, we pride ourselves on providing solutions for customers that drive cost savings, increase visibility to the supply chain, and create growth opportunities.
Agbotic contacted our team and we worked with them to establish logistics for multiple expanded selling regions. These new supply channels enabled sales opportunities and established baseline logistics for future growth. With supply chain logistics in place, Agbotic was able to sell to large retailers around their intended geographies.
Retailers want more from their suppliers
Retail standards are increasing. OTIF (on-time, in-full) expectations make it challenging for suppliers to deliver consistently – and even more challenging to grow into new selling regions. The “near-perfect” logistics requirements demanded by retailers are often a barrier to growth.
“We have had an exciting learning experience with CH to really understand what it takes to have quality products delivered on time, in full and the team has given us that partnership that we’ve been looking for…”
We have a deep understanding of the retail industry – specifically retail grocery. We work with 70 of the top 75 U.S. retailers and we know the ins and outs of both shipping and receiving requirements in this space.
Our predictive technology uses 2.3 billion digital market transactions annually so we can best align supply and demand and assist customers with replenishment across the supply chain.
We continuously refresh our forecasting metrics to accurately reflect inventories which improves delivery performance.
“We’re delivering on some pretty serious volume commitments in 25 states and continuing to grow and the support the C.H. [Robinson] has shown us has allowed us to feel more confident in our deliverables.”
Temp controlled space is limited
Limited shipping capacity is often at the center of supply chain disruptions. Temperature control capacity can be twice as volatile in a tight market due to a much small U.S. carrier network.
When the market is tight and capacity is limited, carriers can be highly selective of the freight they accept. Ambient, or non-temperature-controlled freight, comes with less risk for a carrier. When carriers select freight by “preference”, securing temperature-controlled capacity becomes even harder.
Our network of more than 25,000 temp controlled carriers spans the U.S. to ensure coverage where you need it. We work diligently to ensure carriers have a blend of ambient and temperature-controlled shipments so our customers don’t experience negative impacts as a result of carrier “preference.”
Our transportation capabilities also include origin consolidation. We combine supplier pick-ups to help reduce transportation costs and increase in full deliveries. By consolidating more than 1 million origin orders annually, we also help remove time consuming billing processes so suppliers can focus on business, not paperwork.
Load optimization services ensure all truck capacity is used wisely to reduce shipping costs while ensuring product quality. On average, we increase truckload utilization by more than 10% annually while ensuring your products are delivered with quality and care.
In closing
C.H. Robinson and Robinson Fresh are often viewed as a trucking company, or a shipping company, or a produce company – we are a solutions company. We provide solutions for our customers. All of the services we provide have resulted from the needs of our customers.
We are uniquely positioned in the logistics and produce industries and have the largest temp-controlled network in North America. Let’s see what we can do to help grow your business!