Plastics & packaging freight

Plastics are one of the quiet giants of cross-border freight. The Cargado marketplace sees the category from both ends of the supply chain: raw plastic resins, granules, and totes moving south from U.S. petrochemical hubs to Mexican manufacturers, and finished goods (molded parts, film, foam, plastic sheets, and packaging) moving back north.

A two-way commodity

• Southbound raw material. Plastic resins, resin totes, and non-hazardous granules post steadily out of Houston and midwestern markets, feeding molders and converters in central Mexico. These crossings run overwhelmingly through Laredo.
• Northbound finished plastics. Plasticos is one of the most common Spanish-language commodity descriptions in the data, dominated by the Cuautitlan Izcalli and Mexico City industrial belt, with additional volume from Monterrey.
• Food-grade film. Food-grade plastic film is a recurring specialty flow (Green Bay is its standout origin market) and it demands clean, food-safe trailers.
• Foam and packaging. Polyethylene foam, plastic rolls, and packaging materials appear around Ciudad Juarez and Tijuana, tied to border-zone assembly plants.

Why plastics fit the Mexico trade so well

Much of this freight exists because of Mexico's manufacturing programs: plants operating under IMMEX temporarily import resin and film under the program's conditions, convert it, and export the finished product. That structure creates dependable round-trip freight: raw material in, finished goods out, which is exactly the kind of balanced flow carriers price aggressively.

Equipment and handling

Plastics are light, clean, and forgiving: the overwhelming majority moves palletized, in gaylords, or in bulk bags inside standard dry vans. The main nuances are trailer condition for food-grade film and resin, load securement for tall stacked rolls, and cube: plastic freight often cubes out a trailer before it weighs out. Postings that state the packaging format (totes, big bags over pallets, floor-loaded rolls) get more accurate bids.

For brokers, the balanced north-south structure is the strategic angle: a carrier delivering resin into central Mexico wants a finished-plastics load back out, and postings that acknowledge that round-trip reality, with realistic timing between the legs, consistently attract stronger commitments than one-way asks on the same corridors.

Explore resin and plastics corridors on the lanes pages, or start with the Mexico 101 guides if cross-border freight is new territory.

Industry guide

Where this freight ships from, what the border adds to its cost, and how carrier bids moved out of its markets: Resin south, plastic parts north. Tariff and trade rule changes are tracked on Mexico-U.S. tariffs and trade rules.

On the Cargado network

How plastics, resin and packaging move on the network

Two commodity groups sit on this page. Plastics, resins and chemicals are one, packaging and containers the other; both groupings are ours, made from unstructured descriptions. Each is posted from Mexico to the U.S., from the U.S. to Mexico, within Mexico, from Canada to the U.S., from the U.S. to Canada, within Canada and within the U.S., and in each most loads are dry van. The chemicals page takes the hazmat end of the first group. This page takes resin, film and packaging.

The format decides the trailer spec. Floor-loaded film rolls want a van with e-tracks or logistics posts to brace them; palletized totes and big bags want a pallet count, a weight and sometimes a lift gate. A posting can specify high cube, e-tracks, logistics posts, air ride and lift gate, and dry van freight is posted in all three countries with carriers in each declaring it.

Shippers also post partial-load requests in every one of these directions, and power-only requests on loads from Mexico to the U.S., from the U.S. to Mexico, and within Mexico and the U.S.

Plastics and packaging by group

• Plastics and resins: seven directions, mostly dry van; a part carries a hazmat flag (see the chemicals page).
• Packaging and containers: a group of their own, seven directions, mostly dry van.
• Format sets the spec: floor-loaded film rolls versus palletized totes and big bags.
• Dry van specs a posting can carry: high cube, e-tracks, logistics posts, air ride, lift gate.
• Partials: requested in every direction. Power only: Mexico to the U.S., the U.S. to Mexico, within Mexico, within the U.S.

How to reach plastics and packaging capacity on Cargado

Start with the format. For floor-loaded film rolls, tick e-tracks or logistics posts in the trailer requirements and say how many rolls and how heavy. For palletized totes, big bags or cartons, give the pallet count and total weight, and tick lift gate when the dock needs one. Put the specs in the requirement fields, not only in the notes, so the posting carries them. A partial is a load type on the posting; power only, your trailer and their tractor, is its own request and is posted between Mexico and the U.S. and inside each. Resin with a hazmat flag follows the chemicals page. Carriers whose saved lanes or service areas match are notified and bid on it, and the suggested list shows the reason beside each.

At a glance

Freight posted on Cargado

• Plastics, resins and chemicals are posted in seven directions, and most loads are posted for dry van.
• Packaging and containers are posted in seven directions, and most loads are posted for dry van.
• Some plastics and chemicals loads are flagged as hazardous materials, on lanes that touch Mexico.
• Freight is posted for dry van equipment in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, and carriers based in each declare it.
• Shippers post partial-load requests in every direction and power-only requests from Mexico to the U.S., the U.S. to Mexico, and within Mexico and the U.S.

Carriers declare it

• Dry van postings can specify high cube, e-tracks, logistics posts, air ride and lift gate.

How the marketplace works

• The commodity grouping is Cargado's own classification of unstructured commodity descriptions, not a platform field.
• Carriers do not declare the products they haul, so carriers are not sorted by product; commodity appears only on the posting.
• Suggested carriers are ranked on open truck, saved search, service area and recent bids, and the broker sees the reason for each.

More questions

Is resin posted as hazmat?

Some plastics and chemicals loads are flagged as hazardous materials, and the flag comes with a UN number and packing group. Resin that is not hazardous is posted like any dry load. The chemicals page covers the hazmat end.

Do packaging and containers move on Cargado?

Yes. Packaging and containers are posted from Mexico to the U.S., the U.S. to Mexico, Canada to the U.S., the U.S. to Canada and within each country, mostly for dry van. Loads within Mexico go to Mexican carriers only.