Port of Virginia facilities point the way to and from major United States markets: long a popular call for trans-Atlantic container ships unloading East Coast-destined cargo and picking up outbound goods, in recent years China has topped the TEU charts on both imports and exports. Belgium ranks second as an export destination.

Virginia," as the 1970s advertising slogan proclaimed, "is for lovers." That may well still be tree, but in recent years it has also become a place where companies love to conduct business.

Indeed, the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic USA state placed No. 1 in recent Forbes.com "Best State for Business" rankings as well as in CNBC's "Top State for Business" poll. Forbes.com calculates that the expense of doing business in Virginia is 9% lower than the national average, while tax and energy costs are the seventh and ninth lowest in the nation.

That might be reason enough for a number of major retail distribution chains and food companies ranging from Wal-Mart, Supervalu and Nash Finch to Nestle USA and Sysco Food Systems--to establish distribution centers in the Commonwealth. But for companies involved in the import and export of frozen foods and ingredients, the Port of Virginia's direct gateway to and from much of the nation's production and consumption base is an even bigger draw.

Geographically, the Port is perched within 750 miles (1,200 kilometers) of more than 151 million people holding 60% of the nation's total personal income, and over 300,000 manufacturing firms. Its 50-foot deep channel and Foreign Trade Zone are just 18 miles and under three hours of sailing time to the open sea.

'Tyson is here, as is a refrigerated warehouse for Wanchese Fish Co.," pointed out Russell J. Held, managing director of marketing for tile Norfolk-headquartered Virginia Port Authority (VPA), which encompasses four modern terminals, with a fifth at Craney Island on the drawing board. Combined, they handled more than 2 million TEUs in 2007, with 2,353 ships calling to take on or unload cargo.

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VPA is an inter modal gateway as well, with easy access to six major Interstate highways including 1-95 and 1-64. Trucks transported 66% of incoming freight to inland markets, while 28% went out by rail and six percent was forwarded by barge last year.

New Suez-class cranes operating at the Newport News, and Portsmouth Marine and Norfolk International Terminals are among the largest and fastest in the world, according to Held. They have a 26 container outreach and can move containers on and off vessels speedily and efficiently.

APM Flexes Muscle

By far, the greatest positive economic impact in the area recently has been construction of the imposing APM Terminals Virginia complex in Portsmouth, a three-year, $450 million project which last September culminated in the opening of the company's third-largest container platform in the United States.

The sprawling, 291-acre container terminal sits on a 576-acre tract, of which 130 acres are a dedicated tree and wetlands reserve that will never be developed. Refrigerated container capacity is 960, and a 4,000-foot berth allows for four vessels to dock simultaneously. Six towering, super post-Panamax electric ship-to-shore cranes are on the scene, along with 30 semi-automated rail mounted gantry yard cranes.

Touted as the largest private investment in the history of the Hampton Roads area, the State government contributed $29 million plus a $4 million tax credit to its realization. APM Terminals relocated to the state-of-the-art facility from a nearby site after a 40-year lease there expired. The property has since reverted to the Virginia Port Authority.

"We are laying the groundwork for the future, preparing for growth that's coming. The largest vessels in the world can call here. About five percent of our throughput is now in 45-foot containers, with perhaps 40% of traffic in 20-footers," said Griffith Lynch, APM Terminals Virginia's senior director. "When Phase I is fully built out we'll be able to handle one million TEUs and 500,000 lifts."

Cargo is moved via 12 inbound and 12 outbound gates which minimize the idling time of trucks, he pointed out. Optical scanners and radio frequency identification (RFID) readers prompt more efficient truck entry and exit, directing drivers to the proper loading area. Furthermore, overhead electronic screens and an on-line reservation system optimize truck turn time and the flow of cargo movement at the terminal.

The site also features six on-dock rail connections and 3.3 miles of track linked to Norfolk Southern Railway and CSX Transportation. "We think the percentage of rail cargo will go up from 20% to 30% in the near future, as the Heartland Corridor offers reduced shipping time to the Midwest," said the senior director.

"A port is only as strong as its weakest link, and about five years ago we determined that there was not enough dry warehouse space available. But that problem was solved, under the guidance of Warren Hammer of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership," said Held.

There would certainly seem to be no shortage of public refrigerated warehouse capacity in the area, with Interstate Warehousing operating more than seven million cubic feet in Newport News, and International Refrigerated Port Services offering more than three million cubes in Norfolk. Combined they have blast freezing capability exceeding 1.15 million pounds per day, and each facility is certified for export to Russia.

Up the James River in the state capital is centrally-situated Richmond Cold Storage (RCS) and the corporate headquarters of International Refrigerated Port Services. RCS runs a 2.2 million cubic foot refrigerated warehouse in Richmond that is European Union-approved and Russian-certified for poultry export, in addition to the 3.4 million cube Richmond Cold Storage--Smithfield Inc. coldstore in Smithfield that is Russian-certified for both pork and poultry exports.

Not all ports in the state are on or near the waterfront, however. Approximately 220 miles northwest of Norfolk in Front Royal is the Virginia Inland Port (VIP), which has rail access to VPA as well as direct interstate highway connections to 181 (north-south) and 1-66 (east-west), which puts it within easy reach of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Ohio.

"In recent years over $599 million has been invested in this area, which is the home for 27 major companies," pointed out James C. Davis, Mid-Atlantic Regional Manager of the facility.

Winchester Cold Storage is among them, operating almost four million cubic feet of racked refrigerated warehouse space. Among services offered are United States Department of Agriculture export inspection, tempering, repacking, picking and sorting. Five facilities and 10 buildings are on the premises, which has 69 truck spots as well as CSX and Norfolk Southern rail service.

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Eimskip Triples '07 Revenues After Getting Rid of Airlines

At EUR 1.46 billion, 2007 revenues for Icelandic shipping and refrigerated warehouse giant Eimskip were tripled those for the year before, and the company suffered a net loss overall only because of Air Atlanta--which, with other aviation operations, has now been sold off.

It was just last year that Hf Eimskipafelag Islands took over the refrigerated warehouse operations of Atlas and Versacold in North America. "Systematic work has been invested in integration and restructuring within the companies, an effort that will lead to synergistic effects in 2008," said Eimskip President and CEO Baldur Gudnason. "The management teams of the companies have been merged, the headquarters of Atlas in Toronto have been closed, staff has been reduced and other costs have been reduced."

Another development last year was that Kursiu Linija and Containerships were merged under the name of Contalnerships. Shipping capacity was increased through the use of newer and larger vessels, the number of vessels was reduced, offices were combined and staff was reduced. The company also plans to sell off 700 million euros worth of real estate in Europe by the end of the second quarter in order to improve its equity ratio.