The Food Shippers of America’s Food Chain Digest recently named Leonard’s Express, a leading provider of refrigerated and other trucking services, a Top Food Chain Provider for the second straight year.
“Food shippers rely upon their logistics partners and carriers to help manage a productive, efficient, and seamless food chain,” Brian Everett, Food Chain group publisher and editorial director, said in a news release. “This program highlights providers that are helping shippers successfully navigate through their food chain challenges to accomplish their business goals.”
To be eligible for the Top Food Chain Provider award, companies must successfully complete a rigorous nomination process that includes demonstrating how their service or product solves a business problem for food shippers. Each nominated business must generate at least $5 million in annual revenue and operate either as a third-party logistics provider (3PL), freight broker, motor carrier, or rail, intermodal or maritime company.
Food Chain staff evaluated all nominations to assess the value they provide to food shippers and their achievements over the last 12-18 months. Food Chain also called on food manufacturers, retailers, and distributors to vote for each nominee, validating the submissions by industry professionals. The final list was audited and reviewed by FSA leaders to confirm the quality of providers named on the list.
Leonard’s Express continuously modernizes its fleet and recently built a state-of-the-art refrigerated warehouse to serve its food-grade customers. “Our refrigerated trailers utilize iBright technology to ensure temperature integrity for all products shipped, and an assertive trade cycle on our equipment results in reliable and safe capacity,” Leonard’s Express CEO Kyle Johnson said. “The addition of our 114,500-sq.-ft. temperature-controlled warehouse in the Northeast augments our transportation by providing the ability to efficiently store and re-distribute food shippers’ products.”
Earlier this year, Leonard’s Express rolled out Optimal Dynamics, an AI-based load acceptance and dispatch optimization software, to make better routing decisions. “This will enable our drivers and dispatchers to deliver an even higher level of service to food shippers,” Johnson explained.
Through challenging economic times, Leonard’s Express continues to turn its trucks over every four years, refrigerated trailers every seven years, and vans every 10 years, the company reported. “While other fleets have aged, we’ve stayed on schedule, providing new and reliable equipment and technology to our customers.”
