Top 5 perishables with the fastest-growing demand for air cargo

During the current period of robust demand for air cargo services, one of the hottest types of commodities sold have come in the form of perishable goods. The exotic nature of some foods, plus a critically short shelf life, has made them the darlings of the airfreight world.

The intense appetite for these goods has led to new business opportunities for carriers and forwarders in some regions of the world that could be described as unexpected among the air cargo community. Here is a roundup of five such commodities and points of origin that have begun to turn heads:

Seafood from Scotland

Exports moving from Scotland to Asia have risen more than 400 percent since 2007, according to the industry group, Seafood Scotland. Among the types of seafood atop the list of goods are shellfish, salmon, whitefish and pelagic. Seafood now accounts for the largest rise – 26 percent, year-over-year – in ex-Scotland food shipments, said Natalie Bell, trade marketing manager for Europe, the Middle East and Asia at Seafood Scotland.  Last year was a record year for Scottish food and drink exports, reaching £5.5 billion – an 8 percent rise over 2015 and up 56 percent ahead of 2007. Of these totals, Scottish seafood accounted for about £759 million.