Cold chain volumes in southern Africa are rising as capacity improves and the sector attracts more investment.
According to Marco Grobbelaar, general manager at Independent Beira Logistics Terminals and Services (IBLT&S), the Beira corridor, in particular, is experiencing an increase in volumes.
Factors such as its competitive landside operations and ocean freight rates compared to surrounding ports are contributing to this growth.
Additionally, the import volumes of fertilisers and the expectations surrounding them play a significant role.
"IBLT&S now offers 30 reefer connection points, with two dedicated areas in our expansive 130 000 square meter yard for these operations.
"Currently, our focus is on handling frozen imports destined for Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo," he said.
"Regarding exports, our emphasis lies in providing seasonal supply chain solutions to customers, particularly for citrus, avocado, and similar products.
"This includes ocean freight logistics, where products are either transported in ambient conditions to Beira for packing, monitoring, clearance, and export, or packed in reefers at the farm, transported to Beira, stored, cross-packed at IBLT&S, and then exported."
He said the biggest challenge was still equipment availability.
"There is still a shortage of controlled atmosphere (CA) containers for said products," he said, indicating that despite increased investment, more was still needed.
- Read the full article in our Freight Features edition on "Cold Chain Logistics."
