The demand for refrigerated and frozen foods remains robust. For example, a survey released in November by the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) found more than a quarter of shoppers are buying more frozen fruits and vegetables than three years ago. And over 90% of foodservice operators reported using frozen foods in their menus, with the healthcare, convenience store and fast casual categories measuring the greatest increase in use since 2019. On this episode of From the Cold Corner, AFFI President and CEO, Alison Bodor, and the RFA Technical Director, Doug Marshall, join us to discuss the state of the cold chain in 2023.

Demographic shifts and the rise of online grocery and food delivery services are driving demand for strategically located, multi-node cold storage networks. Dennis Davis, senior director of business customer development at DHL Supply Chain and Josh Lewis, president at RL Cold discuss the partnership’s plans for 5 million square feet of new space across North America. 

The industry is entering a new phase where packaging design must account for the entire product lifecycle, from material selection and manufacturing to end-of-life recovery and reuse. Paige Greenberg, sustainable packaging engineer at Plastic Ingenuity, joins From the Cold Corner to discuss more.

In this episode, we're diving in to the story behind Swoop, the third place finisher in our annual Best New Retail Products contest. Meghan Dowd, co-founder of Swoop, tells us about everything from the initial concept to formulation, manufacturing, and what is next for the brand.

Teton Waters Ranch is expanding its footprint in the frozen aisle with a new line of raw burger patties that prioritize sourcing transparency, animal welfare and simplified ingredients. The product recently earned second place in Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ annual Best New Retail Products contest.

The U.S. cold storage sector is entering a new phase, as operators balance softer inventories and cautious consumer spending with rapid advances in automation, sustainability and facility design. That evolution is reshaping how temperature-controlled facilities are built — and what they are expected to do.

In the final episode of the Cold Storage Deep Dive podcast series, Jennifer Jewers Bowlin and Craig Handy of Henderson Engineers discussed how flexibility and future-proofing are becoming central to cold storage development.

Rob Chambers, Americold CEO, on optimizing a global food network, deeper customer partnerships and more.