Fruits, seafood and pills: Southwest expands cargo business to Mexico

The low-cost carrier expanded its air cargo business to Mexico over the weekend, its cargo business's first international destination. The expansion is an an effort to fly fruits, vegetables and pharmaceuticals, and a host of other goods between the US and its third-biggest trade partner. The programme started service Sunday between Houston and Mexico City and will expand to other cities, including Cancun and Puerto Vallarta later this summer. Mexico is the biggest source of imported fruits and vegetables to the US, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Air cargo is a tiny but growing part of US airlines' overall revenue, thanks to e-commerce and picky eaters who want more fresh food. Southwest made $173m from it last year, less than 1% of its overall revenue. Large US airlines, unlike some foreign carriers, don't operate a dedicated freighter aircraft. Instead they fill up passenger planes' bellies with cargo. Freight demand in North America is growing faster than the global average, according to the IATA, a industry group that represents most of the world's airlines. Southwest operates a fleet of all Boeing 737s and other airlines have much bigger aircraft with more space below the passenger cabin. But the airline hopes the structure of its network will entice shippers to select the carrier. <br/>