The first such arrival took place the previous week, on a specialized refrigerated ship which immediately unloaded its cargo of 5,000 pallets of fresh clementines, according to a press release.
During this winter fruit season, which will continue until May 2023, the port expects to receive around 12 shipments of fruit from the Atlantic port of Agadir.
Joe Cruise, General Manager of GT USA Wilmington, was on hand to welcome the vessel and “We are privileged to be able to continue to be the port of choice to serve our Moroccan partners for the timely distribution of fresh and delicious fruit to the United States. United and Canadian consumers. We look forward to helping our partners with another successful season.
In the release, GT USA Wilmington describes itself as “the United States’ most important marine terminal for perishable goods.” Wilmington is North America’s premier banana port.
Building relationships
GT USA Wilmington notes that it “greatly appreciates and is actively working to strengthen the partnerships it has with Morocco.” Thus, the port recently welcomed two guests from the international relations committee of the Chamber of Commerce of Tangier, Najib Walali, member of the board of directors, and Anouar Arbai, president of the committee for their first visit to the port of Wilmington.
After a discussion of cargoes, trade links and cold treatment, guests toured the 308 acres of the port.
Wilmington is a major port of entry and distribution center for the seasonal import of fresh Moroccan citrus.
Cargo is stored in the port’s 850,000 square foot refrigerated on-dock warehouse complex, one of the largest facilities in North America, before being distributed to markets throughout North America.
The port is Safe Quality Food (SQF) certified and has worked hard to put itself in a good position to serve the Moroccan clementine trade and take advantage of new business from around the world.
GT USA Wilmington is a US division of Gulftainer, a private, independent terminal operator and logistics company with operations and business interests in the Middle East and the United States. The company signed a 50-year agreement to manage operations at the Port of Wilmington.
