Author archives

Sustainable food supply chains: is shortening the answer? Maybe!

Short food supply chains (SFSCs) are increasingly getting attention in food systems research, owing to their rising popularity among consumers, producers, and policy-makers in the last few decades. Written with the aim to identify research gaps for the Horizon Europe research and innovation program, a new literature review provides a state of play of the definition …

The electric, hybrid and fuel cell light commercial vehicles market 2021-2041

Businesses are recognizing that electrifying their light commercial vehicle fleets is not only a successful mechanism by which they can demonstrate their green ambitions, but is also, increasingly, a solid economic decision. The new IDTechEx forecast report “Electric, Hybrid & Fuel Cell Light Commercial Vehicles 2021-2041” provides a detailed twenty-year outlook for the uptake of electric …

German research: don’t blame webstores for city congestion

Delivery vans stopping everywhere, waiting trucks, and more and more traffic in the city. Will the continuing growth of online commerce lead to congestion in cities? MRU, a consulting firm specializing in the courier, express, and parcel logistics industry, did research on behalf of the German E-Commerce and Mail Order Association (Bundesverbandes E-Commerce und Versandhandel …

China’s Cainiao goal is to deliver anywhere in the world within 72 hours for $3

Cainiao, the $10 billion subsidiary of e-commerce giant Alibaba, says it is poised to transform worldwide trade. Cainiao’s plan to create a single ecosystem for all logistics firms across the world to plug into, allowing for the seamless transfer of goods between companies and jurisdictions. Cainiao envisages thousands of independent logistics firms can operate within its …

Cushman and Wakefield: delivering on consumer demands poses challenges for real estate

E-commerce has seen unprecedented growth. While many industries battled disruptions, e-commerce provides opportunity. E-commerce and logistics companies are accelerating planned innovation and restructuring initiatives to stay ahead of the curve spurring the implementation of three to five years of advancements in a span of just five months to keep up. “It’s akin to upgrading the …

Air quality in Europe is improving

Better air quality has led to a significant reduction of premature deaths over the past decade in Europe. However, the European Environment Agency’s (EEA) latest official data show that almost all Europeans still suffer from air pollution, leading to about 400,000 premature deaths across the European continent.

Delivery drones: sustainable or not?

Drone technology is evolving at a fast pace and has increasing potential to compete with more traditional alternatives in a number of sectors beyond retail and delivery. Drone technology has uncertain potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from e-commerce and the logistics industry and concerns over increased noise pollution and threats to wildlife.