CMA CGM has added one of the latest equipment technologies to its reefer trade. It has started trial shipments for sterilised (cold treatment) cargoes. This procedure, according to the Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB), refers to the cold treatment of quarantine organisms like Ceratitis capitata (Mediterranean fruit fly), Ceratitis rosa (Natal fruit fly), and other potentially damaging insects. This means sustained cold temperatures (as required by the importing country) prevent the importation of quarantine pests. In reefers this means that the thermostat controls are set to deliver air at minus 1.5°C (SC1) – or sometimes even colder depending on commodity, packaging and return air temperature (RAT) readings. This is maintained for the lengthy duration of the voyage.
