Miami International Airport (MIA), a gateway to the United States, maintains an incredibly robust perishable cargo hub at ready-to-serve American consumers on Valentine's Day.
Beyond pharmaceuticals and food, the perishable cargo capabilities at MIA allow the airport to handle flowers on a massive scale. MIA is responsible for 89% of all flower imports into the United States. Valentine's Day represents an incredible increase in demand for the flower industry, one that all stakeholders at MIA, from airport officials to airline and customs staff, must handle with efficiency and care.
According to fastcompany.com, in the run up to February 14, 2025, agricultural specialists at MIA processed around "940 million stems of cut flowers, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection."
On the ground in MIA, stairs rolled up to and doors opened on the aircraft while ground crews readied elevators and forklifts to transport the flowers from the aircraft into the cold storage facilities. Considering the massive scale of the aircraft and the fact that it was mostly filled with flowers, it took a large ground crew to efficiently and effectively unload the flowers. The process included individuals pushing freight pallets with the assistance of rollers on the aircraft floor and others outside operating short forklift trips between the aircraft and the cargo terminal.
Read more at Airways