Refrigerated transport: driving the Actros as far as Senegal

"We're always on the move, we always want to go that one step further each day," says Faustino Tudero, Managing Director of Tudefrigo. This family-run business is clear proof that limits are merely something which we impose upon ourselves. After the two brothers Faustino and Melitón Tudero had worked for more than ten years as hauliers covering international routes, they established Tudefrigo in 1993. Their two other brothers would later also join the company. "Getting up-and-running was tough. We started with the transport of fresh and frozen produce from an agricultural co-operative from Navarra," explains Faustino Tudero.

In 2000, the company based in Lasarte (in the Gipuzkoa province) opened a logistics platform for chilled produce in Tudela, in the Navarra province. "It's an area in which some of the most well-respected Spanish manufacturers of frozen produce have their headquarters," tells Tudero. Tudefrigo has specialised in temperature-controlled logistics and the transport of food products, and is today an established company operating on several continents. "We try to keep up with the unstoppable rhythm of market globalisation," says Tudero. He adds that the business fields were able to be expanded thanks to the establishment of new companies as well as by the formation of strategic partnerships with international companies. For example: a few months ago, the company started to offer a customs warehouse service.

International goods transport represents around 85 % of the entire turnover. Within Europe, the company drives all manner of routes, mainly to England, Holland and Germany. In South America, Tudefrigo's focus is on Brazil, where the company functions as a port operator in the Amazon, as well as handling official import and export tasks and the purchasing of raw materials such as soya, wheat, maize and wood.

According to Tudero, the African continent is currently the market with the biggest potential for the business. Tudefrigo travels via Morocco and Mauritania by road as far as Senegal and then heads back to Europe: that's around 5600 km which are covered in seven or eight days, compared with 15 or 20 days which would be required if we were to operate this route by sea. "We work with fresh produce, and so time is a critical factor in our line of work, as too is the maintenance of the cold chain," says Tudero.

Among the most important products are broccoli, strawberries and green beans. Tudefrigo covers, for example, the Spanish and Moroccan strawberry seasons. "Due to the climatic conditions, the African season begins earlier," explains Tudero. Accordingly, the company transports fresh strawberries non-stop from December to March. As soon as the market is saturated, Tudefrigo makes their logistics installations available for storing frozen strawberries. Over the course of the year, these will then be transformed into various products, such as ice cream, yoghurt and desserts of all manner.

One of the strategic pillars of Tudefrigo as a company which is always keen to expand into new markets, is the deployment of their own workforce and fleet. "We need robust vehicles which don't break down," explains Tudero. A year ago, the company acquired two Actros models. After experiencing the impressive reliability and low consumption of the vehicles, they decided to buy a further 16 vehicles.

Contact.

Faustino Tudero, Tudefrigo
E-Mail: faustino@tudefrigo.com

Photos: Begoña Tremps de Pablo