Washington apples resume transloading in Wallula for Northeast shipments

Washington state apples are again moving through Wallula, Washington, via a multimodal facility bound for customers in the northeastern U.S. The restart underscores how rail, trucking and cold-chain handling are being used to protect supply after weather disrupted local produce availability.

Why it matters: - Washington grows more than 60% of the nation’s apple crop. - The Wallula transloading route gives growers and packers a cost-effective way to move fresh produce long distances in refrigerated rail service. - Recent adverse weather in the Northeast increased demand for Washington apples and disrupted local supply.

What happened: - Washington state apples have resumed moving through the multimodal facility in Wallula, Washington, to destinations in the northeastern United States. - Bear Mountain Orchards is using the origin solution provided by Great Northwest Transport. - Union Pacific Railroad serves the facility and is moving loaded refrigerated boxcars. - The facility was formerly operated by RailEx and Union Pacific Cold Connect.

The details: - Great Northwest Transport provides the multimodal pickup and warehouse 3PL support for Bear Mountain Orchards. - The company also serves as the intermodal lift operator at the adjacent Tri-Cities Intermodal facility. - Jason Girnus, vice president and general manager of Great Northwest Transport, said the company offers “a comprehensive pickup solution through to the loaded boxcar.” - Girnus said Great Northwest Transport is asset-based, with trucks and drivers on both sides of Washington state and warehouse capabilities. - Patrick Malloy, packing house manager for Bear Mountain Orchards, said the company needed Washington apples to protect supply chain reliability. - Malloy said customers rely on year-round supply of quality produce, and recent weather caused local disruption. - Malloy said a cost-effective trans-continental sourcing solution was ideal. - Jason Hess, senior vice president-bulk at Union Pacific Railroad, said Union Pacific has served the facility for more than 20 years. - Hess said the site is again using Union Pacific’s refrigerated boxcar fleet and network. - Union Pacific describes its refrigerated boxcar fleet and network as the largest and most advanced among North American Class I railroads. - The Wallula site also supports truck-to-container bulk transloading and rail-to-container transloading just south of the yard served by Columbia Rail. - Tri-Cities Intermodal is served by Union Pacific Railroad and Columbia Rail. - The facility’s initial capacity is 75,000 lifts a year. - Tri-Cities Intermodal plans to expand capacity as traffic develops. - The Wallula location provides access to the Northwest Seaport Alliance for import and export service. - The site also connects to Union Pacific’s domestic intermodal network. - The location supports truck-to-container agricultural transload for export. - The site also offers rail-to-truck transload options using Columbia Rail. - Bear Mountain Orchards is a family-owned grower, packer and shipper of peaches, apples and nectarines. - The company specializes in custom wholesale orders. - Bear Mountain Orchards serves farm markets, local grocery stores, school lunch programs and large supermarket chains. - Great Northwest Transport is headquartered in Pasco, Washington. - The company started more than 50 years ago as a family-owned transportation business in the Columbia Basin. - Great Northwest Transport is part of The McGregor Company, a 140-year-old Eastern Washington company. - Its assets include bulk, tankers and flatbeds. - In 2025, Great Northwest Transport acquired Sunset Transportation, a family-owned trucking company in Seattle.

Between the lines: - The Wallula operation is built as a multi-use logistics hub, not a single-purpose produce lane. - The mix of rail, trucking, containers and refrigerated boxcars gives shippers more options when weather, distance or service reliability become problems. - The reopening signals continued demand for Pacific Northwest produce in Eastern markets.

What's next: - Tri-Cities Intermodal is positioned to grow beyond its current 75,000-annual-lift base as traffic develops. - Additional transload volume could flow through Wallula if Northeast produce demand stays elevated or if shippers keep seeking alternate sourcing lanes. - Great Northwest Transport, Bear Mountain Orchards and Union Pacific appear set to keep using the site for refrigerated apple movements.