Cold-Storage Logistics

How appraisers fit into a vast network that brings global food to American tables

The bounty of today’s supermarkets would amaze our great-grandparents. We enjoy access to exotic produce from every corner of the globe as well as flash-frozen fish from distant oceans and fresh meat that was grazing in the fields of another continent just days ago. All of it is made possible by a complex network of suppliers, logistics companies, and warehouses that rely on various forms of cold-storage and processing facilities as food makes its way to our dinner tables.

Cold-storage facilities are key to making these miracles happen. Appraising them can be as complex as the processes by which a rack of New Zealand lamb arrives on an American plate.

Food-processing facilities are where prepared foods are assembled and packaged, and are often considered cousins to cold storage. Although every facility is uniquely configured with processing areas, they each have similar needs for cold and dry storage as well as freezer storage.

Although I operate primarily in the Greater Boston region, the physical characteristics of these facilities and the importance of proximity to regional distribution networks are similar throughout the country. Access to labor markets is an additional factor.

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