Can goji berries take a train to Europe? Unveiling the lucrative business of Lanzhou railway agency

At 7 am, the container crane bridge at the Lanzhou railway freight station is steadily loading the container with the "Zhongshitong" logo onto the China-Europe freight train. Mr. Zhang, as a senior export agent, has been working on this line for 12 years. "Ten years ago, a monthly shipment of 3 trains was a big order. Now, we start with a fixed 5 trains per week." He smiles while stroking the customs declaration form in his hand. This feast of the "iron camel train" spanning the Eurasian continent is quietly changing the trade ecology in western China.

As a key node of the "Belt and Road Initiative," the throughput of the Lanzhou railway port surged by 67% year-on-year in 2023. The rise of professional agencies such as Zhongshitong has made the originally complex cross-border railway transportation as simple as "building with building blocks":

• Advantage in Time: It saves 20 days compared to sea transportation, and the freight is only 1/5 of air transportation
• Customized Services
: Digital tracking throughout the process from customs declaration, packing to overseas customs clearance
• Policy Bonuses
: Enjoy subsidies for China-Europe freight trains and preferential customs clearance treatment

Ms. Li's goji berry processing factory sent its goods directly to Hamburg through railway agency last year, and the profit margin increased by 30%. "Traditional foreign trade has to go through the turnover of coastal ports. Now, the ex-factory price in Lanzhou is the FOB price." She shows the freight trajectory map on her phone, with 37 GPS positioning points connected into a glowing ribbon. Behind this transformation is the three-guarantee system constructed by professional agencies:

• Multilingual contract review to avoid legal risks
• Thermostatic containers to solve the pain points of agricultural product transportation
• Overseas cooperation warehouses to achieve "door-to-door" delivery

As more and more "Mr. Zhangs" start using AI to calculate the optimal route, and as "Ms. Lis" confirm electronic bills of lading through blockchain, this industry is facing a key transformation. The newly launched intelligent scheduling system of Zhongshitong can now control the scheduling error within 2 hours. However, cross-border railway agencies still face issues such as information gaps in the overseas section and dealing with extreme weather.

Standing in front of the huge freight map at Lanzhou West Station, the red lines extend to the hinterland of Europe like blood vessels. This modern Silk Road no longer requires camels and caravans, but will always need professional "matchmakers." Do you also have a batch of goods waiting for a more efficient travel plan?