Vertical Cold Storage, a developer and operator of temperature controlled distribution centers sponsored by real estate asset manager Platform Ventures, is acquiring Liberty Cold Storage from West Liberty Foods. Terms of the transaction are not public.

Liberty Cold Storage opened its nearly 300,000-square-foot warehouse near Chicago in Bolingbrook, Illinois, in 2016 to service both the nearby West Liberty Foods processing facility and other regional customers. The building features 36,000 pallet positions and 265 blast freezer positions, LED motion lighting, a 63-foot refrigerated dock and drop trailer flexibility.

The operation houses a Hiperbaric high pressure pasteurization (HPP) machine, with plans to double capacity, for food quality/safety and shelf life extension. There are also large rooms for USDA inspected market preparation, code dating and labeling, as well as other processing activities.

West Liberty Foods, a meat processing company owned by the Iowa Turkey Growers Cooperative, will remain a major customer of the distribution center. “This is an opportunity for us to focus on our core strengths of manufacturing, packaging and supporting our retail and foodservice clients, while working with a quality organization that has decades of experience and broad expertise in the cold supply chain. Vertical Cold’s focus on customer service is a key reason why we decided to partner with them,” says Brandon Achen, president of West Liberty Foods.  

“Liberty Cold is the perfect first acquisition for Vertical Cold because of its location near Chicago with intermodal access and the ability to distribute to 85% of the country's population within two days, the talented staff and the quality modern facility that was built to the latest standards. We are open for business and are looking forward to serving existing and new customers,” said Curt Mastbergen, president of Vertical Cold Storage. 

On Vertical Cold’s expansion strategy, Mastbergen added, “We will grow by greenfield development and acquisition, drawing on our key competitive differentiators, including the highest standards of service, win-win collaboration with customers, a fully integrated technology stack that turns data into decision quality information and automation expertise.” 

Vertical Cold Storage, which is establishing a network of cold storages around the United States, will bring in best practices from the collective experience of its leadership to make the Liberty Cold Storage operation even better by leveraging technology and automation for more consistent customer service.

About Vertical Cold Storage

Vertical Cold Storage is a South Dakota based full-service solution provider that builds, develops and operates temperature-controlled facilities throughout the United States. Vertical Cold emphasizes customer care and the satisfaction of supply chain professionals while deploying the industry’s most up-to-date technology and automation. 

About West Liberty Foods 

West Liberty Foods was formed in 1996 under the guiding principles of the Iowa Turkey Growers Cooperative. Carrying on Iowa’s rich farming tradition, its grower/owners are committed to animal health and welfare while delivering superior-quality turkeys—a philosophy that has helped family farms grow and thrive for generations. The continued success of West Liberty Foods is due to the dedication, enthusiasm and support of its grower/owners.