Whisky industry gets logistics boost as rail route to Poland established

by Press Release on 2012-06-27 02:17:59

The growing Scottish whisky industry has seen its logistics trading corridor to Poland strengthen through the utilisation of a weekly rail freight service, operated by DB Schenker Rail, between the UK and Wroclaw in Poland.

Thousands of bottles of whisky are now moving in intermodal containers on freight trains from central Scotland to Barking in London.  At Barking, the containers are transhipped to the weekly London to Wroclaw Polish service, which travels to mainland Europe via the High Speed 1 rail route and the Channel Tunnel.

The volume of whisky moved by rail to Eastern Europe is expected to increase over the coming months in line with the usual pre-Christmas peak.

As the rail service avoids the need for long distance road haulage from Scotland to Poland, emissions are reduced and thousands of lorry miles avoided through this modal shift.

The cargo is being moved through a joint agreement between J.G.Russells and DB Schenker Rail.

Carsten Hinne, Managing Director Logistics for DB Schenker Rail (UK) Ltd, said:  "Mainland Europe is an important trading partner for Scotland, and these rail freight services provide a seamless transport route to Poland.  The Scottish whisky industry needs regular, secure and reliable supply chain solutions.  We are delighted to have delivered that through long distance rail freight services to Poland that incorporate existing logistics solutions."

DB Schenker Rail will introduce a second weekly service between the UK and Poland this autumn, strengthening further the supply chain to Eastern Europe for the Scottish whisky industry.