SEPANG, 6 MARCH 2013 – MASkargo goes into high gear by flying tonnes of fresh chrysanthemum flowers to Japan in a bid to welcome the country’s traditional Buddhist holiday celebration, known to locals as the Ohigan Festival.

The scheduled freighter service which utilizes the newly acquired A330-200F will depart to Narita International Airport every Tuesday and Sunday via Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

“The traditional Ohigan Festival is a significant event for the consumers in Japan, and for some it could be their biggest day of the year. Ohigan Festival will not be complete without these fresh elegant flowers,” said Mohd Yunus Idris, Chief Executive Officer of MASkargo.

During this peak window, the transport of flowers needs to be fast and handled with extra care to ensure that these flowers arrive fresh and crisp. Moreover, business will see a bloom as a result of the flowers in demand.

Mohd Yunus Idris added, “Flowers also have unique cold-chain requirements, which is one of the reasons why MASkargo is able to fly millions of these flowers into Japan. Our sophisticated logistics process equipped with cooling rooms and systems in the warehouse and aircraft and, not least, the expertise of our ground handlers ensures that the flowers arrive fresh at its destination.”

Over the years, MASkargo has gained immense experience from coordinating successful deliveries of various perishable items to destinations worldwide.

The flowers, mainly from Cameron Highlands are harvested by the growers and immediately dispatched on the fastest route to be packaged and loaded straight into the holds of MASkargo’s freighters. That way, the flowers land in all their splendor at Narita International Airport and transported onward to destinations across Japan.

Ohigan is a well-known Buddhist festival celebrated in Japan during the week of March 17-23, honoring the memory of ancestors. Memorial services for ancestors are held during this period and it is a customary practice to bring chrysanthemum flowers when they visit the temples and graves. The holiday is traditionally observed during the spring and fall equinoxes when the weather is more pleasant and people are better able to rest and reflect.