Eddie Stobart goes green to bring in Spanish fruit and vegetables by rail

Environmental fears cause U-turn from haulage company accused of pollution
Robin McKie, science editor
The Observer, Sunday 25 October 2009
To environmentalists, Eddie Stobart is the embodiment of diesel-burning, fume-belching carbon emission, a major contributor to global warming. But the company – whose lorries criss-cross the continent – has launched a low-carbon rail freight trip across Europe.
The Stobart train is scheduled to leave Valencia on Tuesday on a two-day trip to the company's railhead in Dagenham, east London. It will carry 30 refrigerated containers crammed with tomatoes, lemons, oranges and other fruit and vegetables that will be brought, in an eco-friendly manner, to the larders and dining tables of Britain.
The expedition represents the longest single rail journey in Europe, says the company. It will also be the first time refrigerated rail containers will have passed through the Channel rail tunnel. Even better, it will prevent thousands of tonnes of carbon from being pumped into the atmosphere, said William Stobart, the company's chief executive.
"There has been a real change of attitude from the companies we deal with in recent months," Stobart told the Observer. "Suddenly they all want to know if they can have their goods carried in an environmentally sensitive way and, in particular, if they can have them moved by train."
As a result, the firm – once famed for its truckers and mighty, fume-emitting lorries – has turned to trains and, after protracted negotiations, has established the new rail service. A crucial element of these talks involved obtaining pledges from both the French and Spanish rail networks that the train – which will be carrying perishable goods – will not suffer major delays.
"We can't have it being shunted into a siding and then forgotten about," said Stobart. "Getting promises that this won't happen has been vital in setting up this operation."
The Stobart train left Dagenham last Friday carrying empty pallets and trays and is scheduled to arrive in Valencia this evening. The pallets and trays will be filled with fruit and vegetables, the containers sealed and the refrigerator units turned on before the train begins its journey back to Britain. Stobart said this single trip will take 30 lorries off the roads between southern Spain and England and bring about a massive reduction in carbon emissions because trains emit significantly less carbon dioxide per unit of cargo than lorries.
In a year, one weekly rail trip will stop 8,600 tonnes of carbon being pumped into the atmosphere, he said. However, Stobart's rail ambitions go beyond once-a-week journeys. The company plans to run new services on additional days of the week until it is operating five a week from Valencia to Dagenham by the end of next year. "It is just a matter of letting people find out what we are doing and building up the business," said Stobart. "We are quite sure the interest is out there. Consumers want to know what the environmental impact was of the food they are buying in their supermarkets. We can help that."
News of the Stobart launch was hailed by rail experts. "It has been a great disappointment that the Channel tunnel failed to open up a transcontinental rail freight network across Europe," said transport author Christian Wolmar.
"The charges were too high and the different national rail networks did not co-operate nearly enough to let trains pass over their tracks. So people kept on sending their produce by lorry. But now Eddie Stobart has cut through the bureaucracy and is getting something done. I would say that is well worth three cheers."