Cargo security initiative will kick off soon in USA

A new initiative designed to prevent cargo theft by fostering greater collaboration between industry and enforcement agencies will launch shortly in the USA.

CargoNet was first unveiled in September 2009 and is a project sponsored by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) and ISO, a company specialising in risk analysis for the insurance industry.

Its aim is to link up existing databases of cargo thefts across industries with secure reporting and analysis tools to allow "timely sharing of information between theft victims, their insurers, and law enforcement," according to ISO.

Cargo theft hits manufacturers hard and is a drain on the insurance industry as well, costing the USA around $15bn a year, according to estimates from insurer Allianz Global, an early participant in the CargoNet scheme.

Theft of shipments is on the rise, with criminals exploiting a lack of communication amongst logistics providers, manufacturers and law enforcement to carry out serial raids - often in close proximity with each other, using very similar modus operandi and targeting particular types of shipment.

The pharmaceutical sector provides a number of good examples of that phenomenon, with clusters of thefts in Florida and California. But it is also an example of an industry which, through the efforts of committed groups such as the Pharmaceutical Cargo Security Coalition and RxPatrol, saw a dramatic increase in recoveries of stolen shipments in 2009, with an overall decrease in the total number of thefts compared to the prior year, according to PCSC's Charles Forsaith.

That view is backed by the latest report from Freightwatch International, which found there were 64 cargo thefts in the USA in the month of November, including just three affecting pharmaceutical shipments compared to 17 of electronics and 13 building and industrial supplies. The stolen pharmaceuticals included H1N1 vaccine, over-the-counter medicines and infant formula.

In the meantime, other US insurers continue to step up to participate in the CargoNet programme. The Chubb Group is one of the latest to do so, and Pat Stoik, the company's global commercial inland marine manager, believes that the initiative will increase recovery rates and make it easier to bring perpetrators to justice.

"Many losses are either underreported or unreported," he said. "A national database will make it easier to spot cargo theft trends and develop effective loss prevention techniques."

In addition to information gathering and sharing, CargoNet hopes to help deter thieves via the use of adhesive decals and magnetic labels to show that assets in transit are part of the scheme, and will also offer driver training to help them avoid theft.

Another element in the initiative is TruckStopWatch, a programme that trains employees at stops to identify suspicious activity and creates incentives for them - and for drivers - to take action.

December pharma cargo thefts in brief

- On Sunday December 13, a trailer loaded with around $400,000-worth of L'Oreal products was stolen from a warehouse complex in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. The empty trailer has been recovered.

- Also on December 13, Procter & Gamble suffered the loss of two full trailers from a contract manufacturers' drop lot in Burlington, North Carolina. The trailers contained mixed shipments of pharmaceutical and cosmetics products, and the brands included Metamucil and Olay.

- Alcon Laboratories suffered a full truckload (FTL) theft involving 33 pallets of over-the-counter contact lens solution on December 13 at a truckstop in Wytheville, Virginia. An electronic anti-theft device and tractor ignition system had been disabled. The trailer and stolen load are still missing.

- Johnson & Johnson suffered an FTL theft at a trucking terminal in Lehighton, Pennsylvania, on or around December 4. The items were a mixed shipment that included OTC and personal care products and had a value of around $267,000.


Related articles:

H1N1 vaccine stolen by cargo thieves

Stolen Astellas shipment recovered

Cargo theft on the rise in Brazil

FDA updates on stolen Tylenol shipment

Five arrested for armed pharmacy van robbery

Cargo security: thefts, recoveries, and arrests