LATAM Cargo triples pharma shipments in three years

LATAM Group, the 2012 confederation of several large Latin American airlines, has placed a strong priority on pharma cargoes in the last five years and has reaped financial and reputational dividends for its efforts.

The pharma vertical, led by Daniela Vial, director of product development for LATAM Cargo, has tripled the amount of pharma cargoes from 2019 through 2022, she told the American Journal of Transportation in an interview.

“The (tripling) shows the robustness and scalability of the product,” she said. “We are seeing though that the growth tendency has reached a peak and volumes have not stabilized at this new level.” The carrier did not disclose tonnage amounts.

LATAM also became the first airline in the Americas where “we certified our pharma product with CEIV pharma in 2017 and got re-certified in 2020,” Vial said, contending its operational strength is a backbone “in the reliability and consistency of our product.” Pharma represents five percent of LATAM Cargo’s revenues.

The airline transports the time and temperature cargo in its own passenger and freighter aircraft as well as occasional charters used to accommodate specific and special client needs, explained LATAM Cargo’s product development director.

She said the airline aggressively promotes its pharma operations and lift capabilities through webinars, events, media advertising and constant one-on-one communications with customers.

Vial further said that moving pharma cargoes is a “collaborative” effort with partners in the area of handling, storing and other links in the vertical’s “robust cold chain”—especially transparency in processes. To do so, she adds, LATAM Cargo works closely with “all the key Pharma freight forwarders in South America including DHL, Kuehne + Nagel and DSV.