VLI removes operational barrier, expands agribusiness access to rail

VLI, a logistics company that operates railways, ports and terminals, has begun receiving agricultural cargo sold under CIF terms directly at its terminals. The move removes a long-standing obstacle to integrating road and rail transport, making grain flows through Brazil’s multimodal logistics system simpler and more efficient.

The change was made possible by CargoCIF, a digital solution developed by VLI to automate and secure the exchange of documents between farmers and customers. As a result, soybean and corn cargo sold under this model can now be received directly at VLI terminals, eliminating intermediate steps that previously made the process more complex.

Under CIF terms — short for cost, insurance and freight — the seller is responsible for arranging and paying for transportation to the agreed destination. Until now, receiving cargo under this arrangement faced operational hurdles related to document and tax management across the logistics chain.

As a result, many shipments ended up moving directly to ports by road, bypassing the rail alternative.

“The solution turns a long-standing market pain point into a competitive advantage for the customer,” said Gabriel Fonseca, VLI’s general manager for grains. “By connecting producers to the rail network in a simple, secure and integrated way, we eliminate bureaucratic steps, reduce logistics costs and make operations more competitive.”

The system is already in operation and has 12 active customers. From January to June this year, more than 280,000 metric tons of cargo moved through the new solution.

VLI expects to expand CargoCIF to all of its grain integration terminals by the end of 2026.

The platform operates in a controlled digital environment, ensuring traceability, tax compliance and security at every stage of the process. Automated document exchange gives producers, customers and logistics operators greater predictability while making rail more attractive for grain transport.

Intrapreneurship

The initiative was developed through Empreendedores Inova VLI, the company’s intrapreneurship program focused on creating solutions to improve services and operations.

“We took on the challenge of creating a reliable, traceable, automated and tax-compliant alternative for receiving CIF cargo at scale,” said Juliano Cota, one of the project coordinators. “In doing so, we strengthen the role of rail as a more efficient and strategic option for moving grain.”

Logistics and environmental gains

In addition to simplifying processes and increasing operational efficiency, the solution is expected to encourage greater use of rail for agricultural cargo.

The shift supports the migration of shipments that previously traveled long distances by road to a transport mode with lower greenhouse gas emissions. Rail emits six times less CO₂ per metric ton transported than road freight, while also contributing to road safety.

“We now want to keep improving the solution based on customer feedback and the platform’s technological development, preparing the system to meet growing demand,” Cota said.

Source: VLI

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