Entourage Freight Solutions

09/08/2026

September 8, 2026 Refrigerated Freight Report 📦🍅🥕🚚

- Labor Day weekend put additional pressure on the refrigerated market, with rates increasing across much of the country, particularly in California and along the East Coast.
- The Midwest also continues to be an extremely active and competitive market. We expect some of that pressure to ease over the next couple of weeks as seasonal demand begins to slow.
- Another 110 CDL schools across the country were shut down as the FMCSA continues its crackdown on fraudulent and noncompliant training programs. This is another factor that will put pressure on the driver pool and available capacity moving forward.
- Average diesel prices remain extremely high at around $5.60 per gallon nationally, with California averaging approximately $7.21 per gallon. As long as fuel costs remain at these levels, we expect refrigerated freight rates to remain elevated and potentially climb further from current levels.
- Refrigerated spot rates are up another 1.5% over the past month and remain just under 45% higher than this time last year.

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09/07/2026

Happy Labor Day from Entourage Freight Solutions!

09/04/2026

Three words every shipper wants to hear from their broker: "We're on it."

A lane goes sideways at 4pm on a Friday. The appointment you confirmed gets moved. A driver cancels with a live load on the dock. The plan breaks, because plans do.

What happens next is the whole job. We start working the fix before we call you with the problem, so the update you get already has an answer attached.

Nobody controls every variable in freight. We just refuse to hand you a problem and call it a day.

When the fix is already moving before you hear about the problem, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].

09/02/2026

A re**er load rarely fails all at once; it usually degrades in the 40 minutes no one was watching.

So we watch the boring parts. Trailers pre-cooled before the pickup, pulp temps taken at the dock instead of assumed, continuous temperature download so your receiver sees the whole ride, and a dispatcher who knows which shop on that stretch of highway answers at night.

Cold chain kept cold is a process, and the process is where claims get avoided.

When the load can't warm up, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].

**erFreight

08/31/2026

"Your driver is 40 minutes out."

Great. Now what?

A lot of what passes for service in freight is really just narration. A text when the truck is late. An alert when the temperature drifts. A notification that the appointment slipped. Information, delivered right on time to tell you something already went wrong.

A status update tells you there's a problem. A solution is someone already fixing it.

When your re**er drifts, we're sourcing a swap. When a driver falls behind, we've got a backup lined up. When a lane closes, we're already rerouting. You hear about it once it's handled, not while it's still on fire.

When updates aren't enough, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].

08/28/2026

Nothing good happens to a load at 2 AM.

For a lot of shippers, an overnight problem is unseen until they look at their inbox in the morning. By then it's not a hiccup, it's a claim.

We run around the clock. Office hours 7 to 7, a dedicated after-hours desk covering the other twelve. When something goes wrong overnight, someone who already knows your freight is working it before your alarm goes off.

You wake up to the problem and the fix in the same message.

When the fix beats you to the office, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].

08/27/2026

Back to school isn't just a retail season, it's also a freight season. 📚🎒

Backpacks, laptops, and dorm supplies all have to move weeks before the first bell rings.

Here's what back-to-school does to the market:
- Retail restocking pulls capacity toward distribution hubs
- Refrigerated demand climbs as school and campus dining restock
- Parcel and LTL volume spike on the same lanes at the same time

When the shelves have to be full before the students show up, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].

08/26/2026

When it comes to re**er LTL, the quote you book and the invoice you get are rarely the same number. That gap runs wider than it does on dry freight.

But most of the surprise is preventable. It comes down to what you tell the carrier up front, and what you ask before you say yes.

Our latest article breaks down how to get a re**er LTL quote that actually holds.
Read more at https://www.entouragefreightsolutions.com/how-to-get-accurate-re**er-ltl-quotes-for-your-perishable-shipments.

When accurate quoting prevents costly surprises, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].

The quote you accept before shipping and the invoice that lands on your desk are rarely the same. And that gap is wider for re**er LTL than it is on dry freight.

08/25/2026

August 25, 2026 Refrigerated Freight Report 📦🍅🥕🚚

- Last week saw a slight jump in spot rates, up about 5%, while overall load volume and tender rejections remained relatively stable from the week prior.
- It is still unclear how significant the impact of Brake Safety Week will be, but be prepared for a slightly tighter market and potential service disruptions as carriers are delayed by inspections or temporarily placed out of service.
- The Midwest and East Coast continue to see high demand and remain some of the tighter markets in the country.
- Average diesel prices rose another $0.20 to $5.45 per gallon, now $0.32 higher than this time last month.
- Average re**er spot rates are now up nearly 45% compared to this time last year.

Sign up to receive our latest freight report from our industry experts by visiting https://bit.ly/3YdkdWq.

08/24/2026

It’s National Brake Safety Week! August 23–29, inspectors are pulling trucks across North America for a hard look at brake systems, with a spotlight this year on brake drum and rotor condition.

Every truck placed out of service is a load that stops moving. During an inspection blitz, that risk climbs, and so does the chance your freight sits while a carrier sorts out a violation.

This is where carrier selection earns its keep. The carriers we run with keep their equipment inspection-ready year-round, not just the week CVSA is watching. That means fewer roadside surprises, fewer stranded loads, and fewer scrambles landing on your desk.

When a roadside inspection can stall your delivery, ex*****on matters more. Contact us at [email protected].