Fiordelisi, a major Italian producer of sun-dried and semi-dried vegetables, has strengthened the efficiency and sustainability of its logistics operations by adopting Tosca’s reusable Active Lock Crates across its multi-site supply chain. The reusable transport packaging transition has increased storage capacity, improved truckload efficiency, and reduced transport-related emissions, according to the companies.
Based in Puglia in southern Italy, Fiordelisi manages its value chain from cultivation to processing and supplies major retailers and manufacturers throughout Italy and Europe. With sustainability embedded in its long-term strategy, the company regularly reviews its operations for opportunities to reduce environmental impact without compromising quality or cost efficiency.
A Shift Away from Traditional Crates
Historically, Fiordelisi used conventional stackable plastic crates for internal transfers and outbound transport. While functional, these crates consumed significant storage space when empty and limited the amount of finished product that could be loaded onto a truck. The constraints were particularly challenging during peak-season volumes of sun-dried tomatoes, where every cubic meter of space matters.
Seeking improvements in transport density, empty-crate logistics, and overall sustainability performance, Fiordelisi evaluated reusable packaging models. Tosca’s Active Lock folding crate emerged as an option that could address both space and environmental challenges.
Reusable Crates Designed for Real-World Operations
Tosca’s reusable Active Lock crate is built for high-cycle use in demanding food environments and folds flat when empty, dramatically reducing the space required for return transport and warehouse storage. The rigid structure and secure locking system are designed to improve stability in transit, helping protect delicate products such as semi-dried vegetables.
Beyond operational performance, the crates operate within Tosca’s pooling and reuse model. The system keeps assets in circulation through repeated reuse, lowering dependence on single-use packaging and aligning with emerging policies such as the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
“Our reusable packaging and pooling model is designed to reduce waste, cut emissions, and improve performance in real-world operations,” said Marco Mangano, Sales Manager – Retail, Tosca. “Fiordelisi is a strong example of how these benefits come together in practice.”
Quantifiable Gains in Efficiency and Emissions
Since adopting Tosca’s reusable crates, Fiordelisi reports measurable operational improvements. The foldable design allows the company to store five times more empty crates in the same space, reducing handling and optimizing internal logistics.
Outbound transport has also become more efficient. Fiordelisi can now load 560 additional filled crates per truck compared to its previous packaging system. This increases shipped product by more than one tonne of sun-dried tomatoes per load, reducing the number of trucks required and lowering transport-related emissions.
“Being able to send over a tonne more product on the same truck makes our transport both more efficient and more sustainable,” said Antonio Fiordelisi, General Manager at Fiordelisi. “We reduce the number of trips and the emissions linked to them.”
“When you can transport more product in the same space, you spend less, generate less waste, and emit less CO₂. These are tangible, measurable benefits that reusable packaging delivers,” added Gianpaolo Mezzanotte, Managing Director Southern Europe at Tosca.
A Partnership Aimed at Continuous Improvement
Fiordelisi expects efficiency and sustainability to remain top priorities in the coming years and views reusable packaging as a strategic asset. “Tosca brings us efficient, consistent, and reliable packaging solutions,” the company noted. “The quality is excellent, the solutions are efficient, and the cost-to-quality ratio is very good.”
“Fiordelisi is proactive in improving both supply chain performance and sustainability. Tosca are proud to support them with reusable solutions that help deliver operational, economic, and environmental value,” said Mezzanotte.
The collaboration demonstrates how reusable transport packaging—including well-engineered, foldable plastic crates—can deliver simultaneous improvements in logistics efficiency, cost control, and environmental impact across European food supply chains.
Source: www.toscaltd.com
Rick LeBlanc, EMBA, is the founder and editor of Reusable Packaging News (subscribe to the free newsletter) and editor of Western Pallet Magazine. A supply chain journalist with more than 30 years of experience, he specializes in pallets, reusable packaging, material handling and related operations. Rick is co-author of Pallets: A North American Perspective and Pallets & Progress: A Collected History of Pallets and Palletized Handling 1922–1945. He is also an advisory board member of the Virginia Tech Center for Packaging and Unit Load Design. Read Rick’s full bio.
