Dole Food Company announced Jan. 9 the launch of a new weekly Northeast U.S. service, with additional vessel rotation set to increase shipping capacity for bananas, pineapples, and other tropical fruit including branded dragon fruit, mangoes, and limes coming from Colombia, Honduras, and Guatemala into the Port of Wilmington, DE.

The service, which officially started Dec. 31, 2023, will deploy two 1,200 FEU container vessels, MV Robin-2, and MV Robin-5 in a 14-day rotation. 

One of these vessels will be making weekly ports of call in Santa Marta, Colombia, Puerto Castilla, Honduras, and a new port of service in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala before landing in Wilmington each Saturday.

“Dole is excited to expand our service level into the Northeast, bringing even more fresh tropical fruit to market,” says Dole Fresh Fruit North America President Nelson Montoya. 

Both additional vessels entering the expanded service allow for increased fuel efficiency of our service derived from slow-speed operation.

Related articles: Chilean exporters' lawsuit against MSC gets dismissed

“Both existing and future Dole customers can be equally excited at this growth in our service as we continue our journey to make the world a healthier place,” Montoya adds.

Dole Ocean Cargo Express, the company’s commercial marine transportation service is also utilizing these vessels with the introduction of the Mayan Express Service between the Northeast U.S. and Colombia, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador. 

The new service will expand ocean network coverage providing an additional alternative to North Central America to and from the Port of Wilmington, DE. All other existing Dole shipping services will be unchanged.