All that online grocery shopping is causing a cold storage shortage

Deep in a Vernon warehouse, barrels of frozen mango puree from Mexico are stacked four stories high. Hams for Christmas are flash-frozen as June temperatures climb outside...

...Lineage is the biggest player in the country’s cold storage industry, a business consumers seldom see but one that plays a crucial role in keeping edible fare fresh from the time it’s harvested until it reaches the kitchen fridge.

Now, changes in the way people shop have the “cold chain” scrambling to keep up. Consumers, particularly younger buyers, are turning more and more to online grocery shopping and prepared meal services, which means more refrigerated warehouses are needed to keep that stuff cold.

To keep pace, the country will need 100 million square feet of new cold storage warehouse space over the next five years, according to a report by real estate brokerage CBRE...

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RSK: I tell you...on-line equals more brick n mortar in the form of warehousing and cold storage is next in line for expansion.