Food and beverage
Food and beverage freight has rules other freight doesn't: temperature, code dates, food safety, heavy loads and grocery DCs with strict appointments. From snacks and specialty foods to beer and wine, we help food and beverage brands lower their freight spend while keeping product safe and on time.
Examples we look for in a freight review.
Grocery DCs, UNFI and KeHE fine suppliers for late deliveries, no-shows, short-notice rescheduling, BOL and placard errors, pallet restacking and shortages. We prevent the fines your freight causes, dispute the ones you don't owe on your behalf, recover deducted money and file loss and damage claims, including for broken or temperature-damaged product. Recovered deductions are reported as their own category of verified savings. See retailer deductions and chargeback recovery
Public research
In 2024, EPA recognized Ocean Spray (with TJX) as a SmartWay® award winner for shipping and receiving practices that "reduce truck idling and driver waiting at their facilities", for using intermodal rail on long hauls, and for fitting more product on each truck (EPA news release, Sept. 2024).
Earlier EPA research describes Ocean Spray filling Tropicana's empty return boxcars, which cut its transport cost on that route by more than 40%, and Stonyfield Farms raising its required lead time and minimum order size to ship full containers (EPA-420-F-19-014, 2019, p.2).
Source: U.S. EPA SmartWay publications (2019, 2024). The examples and figures are EPA's, not Maximizer Team results. Maximizer Team is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. EPA.
Light products that fill the trailer before they reach the weight limit, shipped to grocery DCs and distributors. A CPG snack company is one of our clients. Read the case study
Natural and specialty brands shipping to UNFI, KeHE and natural retailers, often in smaller orders with distributor rules on appointments, labels, pallets and paperwork. Carriers and order patterns chosen when the brand was small often stay in place as volume grows.
Refrigerated freight where code dates leave little room for delays, and where the right equipment protects the product without paying for reefer on lanes that don't need it.
Wineries, breweries and beverage brands shipping heavy loads to distributors and DCs. Load plans, pallet patterns and equipment decide how many cases fit under the weight limit, and wine may need temperature protection in some seasons. Michael Holvoet's experience includes wine, and a Sonoma County winery is among the companies we've worked with.
See also: CPG · Retail suppliers · Freight modes guide
Why us
Benchmark · Implement · Verify
Common savings come from using refrigerated equipment only where needed, loading heavy and light products to fill trucks by weight and space, consolidating orders around shelf life and benchmarking rates on every lane. We can also help prevent and recover grocery DC fines, reported separately from freight savings.
Yes. We review reefer and dry lanes alike, including where temperature control is truly required and where it isn't.
Yes, through our related retailer deductions service. We trace late delivery, appointment, BOL and pallet fees to their cause, dispute the ones you don't owe on your behalf, recover the money and fix the cause.
Often, yes. Small orders are where co-loading, pool distribution, order minimums and better LTL rates make the most difference. The review shows which fit your orders.
Yes. For heavy loads, the gains come from load plans, pallet patterns and equipment that let more cases ship under the weight limit, plus the rate you pay per load.
It can be, when products share temperature, food safety and handling needs. We check compatibility before recommending co-loading or consolidation.
The 14-day freight savings review is free. There's no upfront fee. If you go ahead, we're paid only from savings verified on your invoices. Recovered deductions are tracked and reported as their own category of verified savings.
No. Maximizer Team is an independent freight savings advisor. We don't haul freight, sell capacity or take carrier commissions, so our advice isn't tied to any carrier.
Yes. Fuel is a large part of food and beverage freight cost, especially on reefer lanes. We check the fuel table in each agreement, the index and week used, and whether the surcharge is applied to the right base, then compare that with what carriers actually billed.
Yes. Many food and beverage brands pay for transportation inside a 3PL, warehouse or co-packer invoice that also covers handling. We separate the freight portion, compare it with market rates and your contract terms, and show where bundled pricing costs you more.
Start with a short intro call. Then send us 12 months of freight invoices. In 14 days you'll get a free written review of your biggest freight savings opportunities, dry and refrigerated.
Get my free freight reviewNo upfront fees. Paid only from savings verified on your invoices. NDA available.