1.1 Definition and scope of the study

Cold storage is part of the cold logistics sector the same way refrigerated transport is. It is the intermediate storage stage between the factory exit and the logistics platform, employed to avoid breaking the cold chain.

The cold store is a building that allows storage of perishable goods by keeping them at low temperature. The products concerned fall into two categories:

Food products (meat, fish, eggs, dairy products and fruits and vegetables) ;
Pharmaceutical products.

Cold storage can be :

In positive cold (between 0 °C and 15 °C) ;
In negative cold (below 0 °C) ;
Multi-temperature (positive or negative cold and storage of dry products).

The French warehousing and storage market is growing. Very large warehouses are becoming increasingly popular and are preferred to meet the ever-increasing demand from e-commerce. However, if the cold storage market can build on the growth of online food retailing, as the market for cold storage is growing rapidly, there are a number of barriers to expansion for the cold storage industry.

First, the decrease in the consumption of animal products, secondly the decrease in frozen products as well as the growing attraction for fresh, but also local products.

This segment is very marginal, but short circuits are becoming increasingly popular. Another challenge for the cold storage business, particularly energy-intensive, and the most important aspect of the company's business, is managing its energy costs.

1.2 A fast-growing global market

The global market

The cold storage market has grown significantly in recent years, benefiting from the strict regulations governing the production and supply of temperature-sensitive products. Analysts expect the market to grow by around **.*% per annum in the coming years.

Change in the revenue of cold storage services World, **** - ...

1.3 Growth in the French market has accelerated over the last three years

It is possible to estimate the turnover generated by the veterinary services sector at *.* billion excluding VAT in **** . The sector's growth accelerated significantly from **** as shown by the turnover index for the industry.

Change in the revenue of cold storage France, ****-****, in millions of euros CAGR : + *.*% Source: ****

Logistics real estate ...

2.1 Overview of the sector's customers

The customers of cold storage players can be segmented as follows:

Producers and importers of agri-food raw materials ; Manufacturers of fresh and frozen food products ; The restaurant sector ; The distributors ; Pharmaceutical and medical industry players.

The evolution of the cold storage market is strongly linked to the demand for perishable goods ...

2.2 Study of e-commerce in France

E-commerce turnover France, ****-****, in billions of euros Source: FEVAD

E-commerce in France has grown monumentally, reaching **.* billion euros in ****. Although the growth rates of the activity have slowed down since ****, they are still recording double-digit growth.

Food spending is expected to follow the same trend

Ranking of e-commerce ...

2.3 Dynamics and functioning of the frozen food sector

As the main customers of companies specialising in cold storage, the relative weight of the various channels and players makes it possible to estimate their importance for the companies operating in this market.

B*C distribution of frozen products

The business to consumer segment corresponds to distribution between a company and ...

3.1 Characteristics of companies in the sector

The table below outlines the characteristics of the companies in the cold storage sector.

Source: ****

3.2 Intermediate costs and consumption

Breakdown of main intermediate consumption France, ****, in millions of Source: ****

Observation of the structure of intermediate consumption expenditure by companies in the sector reveals two main expenditure items:

Electricity expenses: ** million (***) Leasing: ** million (***)

The importance of electricity expenditure is reflected in the composition of the COMPOSITE index (***) of variations in the ...

3.4 Geographical distribution of production and number of players

Number of companies operating in the sector France, ****-****, in number of companies Source: ****

Number of individuals employed in the sector France, ****-****, in number of employees Source : ACOSS

The number of companies operating in the sector has increased relative stability, while the number of people employed in cold storage ...

3.5 Companies in the sector and new disruptive players

The table below outlines the main French companies acting on the scene.

Source: ****

Among these companies, we can note the presence of the main pure players of cold logistics: STEF, Olano, Sofrilog, etc. But also generalists who have integrated the cold storage activity like XPO.

New disruptive players

From housing to ...

4.1 Cold storage services

There are three types of cold stores depending on the desired temperature:

Positive cold storage: the temperature is between * and ** degrees and allows the storage of different types of products with a short shelf life (***). Negative cold storage: the temperature of these warehouses is below *°C, generally between -**°C and ...

4.2 Awards: From purchasing mobile cold stores to building cold stores

The selling price of mobile cold rooms is mainly related to * factors:

The volume The number of pallets The possible temperature range

Source: ****

Finally, according to STEF and Cryologistic, the investment cost of a new warehouse is around *** euros per cubic metre with amortization taking place over a period of ** to ...

4.3 Automation could disrupt the industry

Racking optimization should increase the efficiency of cold stores

The traditional static and dynamic shelving must face the rise of warehouse automation. The latter are indeed increasingly resorting to the digitization to optimise the movement of employees, for example. Mecalux explains that there are three levels of automation within a storage ...

5.1 Difficulties in finding labour and controlling costs within a strict regulatory framework

The cold storage industry is struggling to attract labour due to the difficult working conditions imposed on employees. [***]

Cold logistics represents a health and food safety issues and is therefore governed by the French and European regulations. For example, the European regulation **/**** requires cold chain actors to use temperature recorders at ...

5.2 Regulated production

The use of HFCs (***) for maintaining products at temperatures below ambient is already regulated.

At the European level, regulation ***/****, known as "F-Gas II", which has been in force since * January ****, "reduces and will significantly reduce the quantities of HFCs placed on the market by ****". [***]

However, the French government has announced that ...