Young Brothers Ltd. said it will increase the fuel surcharge on goods shipped interisland to 4.22 percent from 2.78 percent effective today in response to rising fuel prices.

Young Brothers' fuel costs have increased about 44 percent since it last raised its fuel surcharge in March, said Roy Catalani, the company's vice president of strategic planning and governmental relations.

The cost of fuel burned by Young Brothers' vessels has increased to $4.17 a gallon, up from $2.90 a gallon three months ago, Catalani said. The surcharge actually lags the cost of fuel because it is based on the average fuel costs for the previous three-month period, he added.

The 4.22 percent fuel surcharge will add about 2 cents to the cost of shipping a 24-package case of saimin shipped on a pallet of 90 cases and about 1.5 cents to the cost of shipping a case of 24 cans of juice shipped on a pallet of 110 cases, the company said in a news release.

Young Brothers continues to streamline and improve its equipment and operations in order to reduce fuel consumption, Catalani said.

"One example is our program to replace our barges with larger, state-of-the art vessels — the first of which, the Ho'omaka Hou, went into service on our Kaua'i route last November, and the second and third of which are projected to go into service in approximately July and November, respectively, of this year," he said.

Because of their design, the new barges can carry a lot more freight without increasing the tug's fuel consumption, Catalani said.

Young Brothers' parent company, Saltchuk Resources, bought the cargo division of bankrupt Aloha Airlines last month for $10.5 million.