Reefer Vessel Charter
Refrigerated cargo ships, known as reefers, carry perishable cargo that must stay at a set temperature for the whole voyage.
What reefers carry
Fresh fruit and vegetables, frozen fish and meat, dairy and other temperature-controlled cargo, usually palletised or in cartons, in holds with controlled temperature.
What to prepare
The cargo and the temperature it needs, the quantity, the loading and discharging ports, the laycan and any handling requirements. Perishable cargo has tight timing, so be exact about dates.
How it is chartered
Reefers are fixed on a voyage charter for a cargo or on a time charter for a season or a period.
What a reefer ship carries
A reefer ship is a refrigerated cargo ship. It carries perishable cargo on pallets in insulated, cooled holds: bananas, citrus fruit, other fruit, frozen fish, meat and juice. Each hold can be set at its own temperature, from deep frozen cargo at about minus 18 degrees Celsius or lower to chilled fruit at a few degrees above zero. Some ships also control the atmosphere in the hold to slow the ripening of fruit.
Typical trades
Bananas go from Ecuador, Colombia and Costa Rica to Europe, Russia and the Mediterranean. Citrus and other fruit go from South Africa, Chile and Peru to Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Frozen fish and meat travel from fishing and farming countries to large importers. The seasons decide when ships are needed, and the crops of the southern hemisphere come when the northern harvests are over.
What to put in your request
The product, the temperature it needs, the quantity in pallets or tonnes, the loading and discharging ports, the laycan and whether the cargo must be pre-cooled. A tight loading window is normal for fruit, so a charterer should say how quickly the cargo can be brought to the quay. Refrigerated cargo is also carried in reefer boxes on liner services; this page is about ships that are chartered for the whole cargo.
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