Fresh produce is one of the most demanding freight categories. Temperature, timing, palletization, and carrier selection all affect whether your product arrives in sellable condition. Here's the full playbook.
In This Guide
What It Means
Fresh produce transportation is a specialized category of temperature-controlled freight that demands precision at every step — from pre-cooling the trailer to specifying the correct temperature set point to managing transit time against the product's remaining shelf life. Unlike non-perishable freight, produce that arrives outside temperature specification or beyond the optimal delivery window may be unsaleable.
Canada's produce market relies on an extensive reefer carrier network moving fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs from growing regions in BC, Ontario, and Quebec, as well as US imports through Windsor-Detroit, Fort Erie-Buffalo, and other border crossings. Harvest season — August through October — creates peak demand for reefer capacity that shippers who don't plan ahead pay for at peak rates.
Why It Matters
- Produce temperature tolerance varies by commodity, lot, maturity, time and handling history
- Shelf life at delivery directly determines your buyer's ability to sell the product before spoilage
- Harvest season creates competitive reefer capacity demand — shippers who plan ahead secure equipment and rates; those who don't face premium spot pricing
- Carrier selection for produce goes beyond price — carriers must understand pre-cooling, airflow, and temperature monitoring
- Border crossing delays for cross-border produce imports can push transit time beyond product tolerance if not anticipated
How It Works
Confirm Temperature Requirements for the Product
- Obtain the shipper or product owner's required temperature, acceptable range and units
- Confirm product identity, maturity, packaging and receiver instructions
- Review mixed-load compatibility instead of assuming a shared commodity-group temperature
- Use official commodity guidance as context, not a substitute for shipment instructions
Pre-Cooling
Pre-cooling and temperature instructions are confirmed for the shipment. Product and trailer pre-cooling are separate considerations; transport equipment is generally intended to maintain conditions rather than rapidly cool warm product. Follow the shipper and product owner's requirements.
Palletization and Airflow
Cold air from the refrigeration unit flows from the front of the trailer through floor channels and around the load. Pallets must be loaded to maintain these airflow channels. Blocking the channels — whether by tight palletization, floor-level product, or inconsistent pallet heights — creates warm spots that cause localized spoilage even when the overall trailer temperature reads correctly.
Temperature Logging and Documentation
Request available temperature records and confirm receiver documentation requirements. A logger records its location at configured intervals, not every product. Monitoring and records are not automatically included and do not alone establish condition or liability.
Common Challenges
- Trailers not pre-cooled to set point at time of loading — most preventable failure
- Incorrect temperature specification — confirm commodity requirements with your QA team, not from memory
- Airflow restrictions from improper palletization creating warm spots in the load
- Border crossing delays extending transit time beyond produce tolerance for cross-border shipments
- Harvest season capacity shortages — shippers who don't book in advance face availability and rate problems simultaneously
Best Practices
- Know your commodity's exact temperature requirement — confirm with your QA team before specifying to the carrier
- Specify the pre-cool requirement explicitly when booking — write it into the booking confirmation
- Confirm requested monitoring and temperature records with the assigned carrier
- During harvest season (August-October), book reefer capacity at least 48–72 hours in advance
- Communicate transit time requirements clearly — not just the delivery date, but the hours-of-transit tolerance
- Understand remaining shelf life at pickup and ensure transit time is within acceptable limits
- Review POD temperature logs at delivery and flag any deviation before signing off
When to Use This Service
- Any fresh fruit or vegetable shipment requiring maintained temperature
- Floral products and cut flowers with temperature requirements
- Dairy products and fresh proteins requiring cold chain
- Produce moving from growing regions to distribution centres or grocery chains
- Cross-border produce imports and exports between Canada and the United States
OTR coordinates refrigerated FTL and shipment-dependent LTL, dedicated or expedited produce transportation. Equipment, pre-cooling, monitoring and records follow shipper instructions and available carrier capability; OTR does not certify food safety or cold-chain compliance.
Read fresh-produce transportation guides and the reefer setpoint and product-temperature guide.
Planning references only—not legal advice, food-safety certification, product-disposition or carrier approval, substitutes for shipper SOPs or product-owner instructions, or guarantees of shelf life or product condition. Confirm written instructions with the responsible parties.
Numerical commodity examples are general references, not universal transport temperatures or shipment instructions. Follow the product owner’s, shipper’s and receiver’s current requirements.
Official food-transport references
CFIA and FDA explain applicable legal requirements and role-based responsibilities, including scope and exceptions. USDA’s historical handbook is technical guidance, not current law. OTR’s checklists and tools are planning recommendations, not compliance certification. Confirm current applicability with the responsible shipper, importer and appointed customs broker.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common cause of fresh produce loss during transportation?
The most common causes are temperature deviations (trailer not pre-cooled or incorrect set point specified), extended transit times that exceed the product's remaining shelf life, improper palletization that restricts airflow and creates warm spots, and border crossing delays for cross-border produce shipments.
How far in advance should I book reefer capacity during harvest season?
During BC, Ontario, and Quebec harvest seasons (August–October), book reefer capacity at least 48–72 hours in advance, and preferably further ahead for dedicated lanes or high-volume periods. Spot market reefer capacity during peak harvest commands significant rate premiums and is not always available.
Do I need a temperature logger on every produce load?
Confirm requirements with the shipper, product owner and receiver. Ask for monitoring or records when quoting and confirm what the assigned carrier and equipment can provide. A record is evidence with limitations, not certification of product condition.
What happens if produce arrives outside temperature specification?
Preserve the measurements and original records, note their locations and gaps, and notify the responsible product owner and receiver under the shipment's exception procedure. OTR coordinates communication; it does not decide acceptance, rejection, release or liability.
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