U.S. vegetable shippers are dealing with a fresh wave of logistics pressure this spring as refrigerated container availability tightens and both truck and ocean freight rates climb above seasonal norms. A May 14 report from The Ruby Company flagged that freight rates have been running above expectations, with disruptions affecting produce movement across multiple transportation modes.
This comes at a difficult time — peak domestic growing seasons are ramping up across California, the Southeast, and the Midwest, meaning more volume needs to move simultaneously. Tighter reefer supply and higher rates directly compress margins for shippers and can delay time-sensitive perishables, creating quality risks on top of cost pressures.
Category managers and buyers should be in close contact with logistics partners now to lock in capacity before summer volume peaks. If this trend continues, expect freight surcharges to start showing up in supplier conversations over the next few weeks.