Young Bros. on Sept. 3 increased its fuel price adjustment to 7.01 percent from 4.22 percent, in effect since June 3. The company cited the increased cost of fuel during the past three months. The June through August average fuel
Young Bros. on Sept. 3 increased its fuel price adjustment to 7.01 percent from 4.22 percent, in effect since June 3. The company cited the increased cost of fuel during the past three months.
The June through August average fuel price was much higher than that of prior three-month periods, said Roy Catalani, vice president of strategic planning and government affairs for Young Bros.
Because of the rapid nature of this year’s increases, Young Bros. recovered a little over half of its increased fuel costs in the first seven months of this year, he continued.
Young Bros. says it is working to streamline and improve its equipment and operations, including programs to replace existing barges with larger, state-of-the art vessels — the first of which, the Ho‘omaka Hou, went into service on the Kaua‘i route in November 2007.
A third new barge is expected to go into service by the end of the year, with a fourth in 2009.
Young Bros. estimates that between 2003 and 2007, the combined impact of various fuel efficiency efforts has resulted in more than a 30 percent increase in fuel efficiency.
The 7.01 percent adjustment will add about 1 cent to the cost of shipping a 24-package case of saimin (shipped on a pallet of 90 cases) and about 1 cent to the cost of shipping a case of 24 cans of juice (shipped on a pallet of 110 cases). The new FPA will add about 5 cents to the shipping cost for a 50-pound bag of Maui cabbage (approximately 14 heads per bag) to Honolulu.
