Looking at the reefer market, the traditional reefer vessels do not count anymore when it comes to growth. Worldwide the reefer fleet is getting older and there are no new vessels build in this category. The containerisation continues in this industry as well. “When it comes to refrigerated container transportation the capacity to look at is reefer containers not vessels,” says Anne-Sophie. “Here we have seen less new-builds than demand growth over the last four years, and the gap between supply and demand is narrowing.” Over the last years, this has meant significant challenges for key reefer markets in terms of equipment availability.
Maersk Line is shipping more perishables too. “There are of course various reasons for this trend, but clearly growing affluence of the global population, especially in Asia, the increase of cooking TV programmes and the fact that grocery retailers are opening fresh meat, fish, fruits and vegetable sections, have boosted demand for perishables across the globe.” During the last five years the category grew with five to six percent annually. The market for regular containers grew two to three percent. “The demand to ship fresh food across the oceans is therefore twice as high as it is for other products.”Anne-Sophie points at price and sustainability as two elements which make shipping reefers more attractive for customers then air transport. “With the progressing digitization come many additional benefits. New reefer technology nowadays keeps food fresh for over a month, allowing agriculture producers to safely send everything from Spanish orange juice to Peruvian fish around the world. Maersk is strongly contributing to the development of new reefer technologies. We have in recent years invested in modernizing our equipment.” She mentions the Starcare™ Controlled Atmosphere containers slowing down the ripening process during transit. In September 2017 Maersk Line introduced Remote Container Management (RCM). The system allows customers to monitor the conditions inside their container. Maersk expects to see an increase in their traditional perishable reefer volumes like agriculture. Next to this there are new opportunities in sectors like pharmaceuticals.
The main reefer trade is from the southern hemisphere to the north. “Exporters in places like Latin America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand move fresh goods to supplement demand in the north during the winter months,” says Anne-Sophie. She illustrates this with an example: 10 years ago, you could find strawberries and blueberries in Denmark for only three months a year. Now, it is year-round, thanks to reefers, and everyone from the smallest to the biggest agriculture producers can join the supply chain.
The transport sector is responsible for 23% of global energy-related emission. Shipping alone is responsible for 3-4% of global emissions. Shipping companies work on more sustainable shipping. “While our size in shipping comes with a significant footprint, it is through the economies of scale of our vessels, new technologies and network optimization that we can contribute to more energy efficiency and the reduction of CO2.” Maersk’s sister company Seago Line has recently added new vessels to their fleet, which use marine diesel fuel fully compliant with the Emission Control Area (ECA) rules, established by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). “These new vessels have installed 600 reefer plugs. Fresh commodities moved aboard include citrus, tomatoes, oranges and potatoes,” says Anne-Sophie. “In line with the Paris Temperature Goals, Maersk Line’s reduction target is 60% less CO2 emitted per container moved by 2020 (2007 baseline) and we are looking into all possible compliance opportunities for the future.”
More information:
Maersk Line
Anne-Sophie Zerlang Karlsenwww.maerskline.com