All the ongoing news reports about foreign trade, tariffs, and the related political maneuverings in Washington and capital cities around the world have us thinking about trade, too. That would be the international trade that comes right through our warehouse doors here at Adams Cold Storage in Auburndale.
It really is interesting to consider the variety and volume of imported food products we take in, store, and ship out at ACS. Interesting, too, are their points of origin. We touched on this topic in a previous column, so you might recall that some well-defined spaces in our warehouse actually have been established as foreign-trade zones for a few of our import-export customers.
In the past year, most of the imported products we’ve stored have come from Europe, China, Turkey, and Canada. A few have also come from South America. Most of these imports have come through shipping ports in Florida, Delaware, and Savannah, Ga.
What follows is an alphabetical list of leading countries of origin for the imported products we currently store (refrigerated or frozen) at ACS. After each nation’s name is what our customers typically send our way.
- Argentina — Shrimp
- Belgium-Danish pastries
- Canada (Newfoundland & Nova Scotia) — Seafood
- Chile — Grape concentrate
- China — Apple concentrate and essences
- England — Croissants
- Egypt — Frozen vegetables and spices
- Germany — Pretzel breads
- India — Mango concentrate
- Mexico — Citrus concentrates (orange, lemon)
- Puerto Rico-Specialty breads
- South Africa — Citrus concentrates (lemon, lime)
- Spain and Portugal — Octopus and squid
- Turkey — Apple concentrate
- Vietnam — Shrimp
How many of these products will, in the end, be affected by the international tug-of-war? We’ll leave that for the politicians to figure out. In the meantime, we have a job to do, and that’s to take care of our customers and whatever products — foreign or domestic — they have for us to store.
This column is sponsored by Adams Cold Storage, LLC, and the opinions expressed herein may not reflect those of CFAN or of its advertisers.
BIO: Ben Adams, Jr., is an owner and president of president of Adams Cold Storage, LLC, in Auburndale. He has been directly involved in citrus production, warehousing and distribution, as well as state and community support, since 1980. His facility incorporates some 250,000 square feet of multitemperature warehousing, and is AA rated by BRC-International.
