PORT OF TUCSON’S FIRST RAIL EXPORT HEADED TO JAPAN

On Thursday morning, September 26, 2013, APL Logistics dispatched the first ever ocean container to the Port of Tucson container yard, to be loaded locally with an export shipment going straight to Japan.  Azmira Pet Food, a Tucson company, is the first to take advantage of the new capability at the Port of Tucson to directly ship ocean freight to outbound ports. The makers of Azmira Pet Food previously had to rent an empty freight truck to pick up their product and drive it to the Port of Los Angeles for export. Last week, they simply drove it a mile down the road to the Port of Tucson and loaded it onto an ocean container where it rolled away by rail to the L.A. port, destined for Osaka, Japan. Please view the two minute video of this historic event Azmira filmed to show how quick and simple the whole process went.

The Port of Tucson has been used for Domestic Service but this year reached International Service status as an International Inland Port. With an aging and overburdened U.S. interstate system, the strategic location of Tucson between Texas and California, and Canada and Mexico, makes it key to both rail and road service. You don’t get cargo to Phoenix from the East Coast, Chicago, Texas (Asia) or Mexico by rail without going through Tucson. The Port of Tucson has already put in place a multi-million dollar infrastructure that includes 2 million-square-feet of warehouse buildings and nine miles of private rail tracks by the owners and is an active transportation and logistics center on the Union Pacific Rail line. To see our earlier story on The Port of Tucson of Sept. 5, 2013 click here.

Dr. Lisa S. Newman, N.D., Ph.D. founded Azmira Holistic Animal Care® in 1982, very little was known about natural health care for pets at that time. Concerned about her own pets’ health problems, she found few answers through traditional avenues, so she drew upon her education in human nutrition, homeopathy, and alternative care, and set out to research and develop safe, effective programs for all pets. The information that she gathered soon became of great interest to others and proved to be effective.

During Dr. Newman’s initial research, she was shocked not only by the lack of quality in existing products, but by the lack of all-natural pet supplement products in the marketplace altogether.  These findings, coupled with the overwhelming sense of betrayal she felt by national products that fell short of their advertising claims, led Dr. Newman to create her own product line in 1988.

Azmira Holistic Animal Care® is one of the very few companies whose products are formulated by an experienced natural products researcher, not just a “marketing”, “ingredient”, or “money” person solely concerned at the end of the day with profits. As a result, the products that Dr. Newman formulated continue to address many health and behavioral issues when other alternative or traditional medical approaches have failed.

In 1991, Dr. Newman was joined by Marcy Merin. As a former client, Marcy had witnessed such a health improvement in her own dogs that she wanted to share in the growth of the company so that many more animal caregivers could benefit as much as she had. Together, with the help of an exceptional staff, an in-depth understanding of how nature works for pets, years of documented professional experience, adhering to high ethical standards and truthful promotions, they have grown from pioneers to leaders in this exciting field.