Protecting Africa’s food security

At AIIM, we are proud to hold a controlling stake in Commercial Cold Holdings (CCH), a two-year-old pan-African cold-chain solutions company that is investing in Africa’s cold storage infrastructure to increase food security and quality for the continent. CCH currently operates 10 temperature-controlled warehouses in South Africa and Namibia, handling fish, vegetables, meat and chips with a capacity of around 160 000 pallets. Globally, the temperature-controlled logistics sector is being driven by both growing populations (with food consumption outpacing the rate of population growth) and the continued globalisation of trade, which in turn is fuelled by consumer demand for a broader range of products. While harvests are seasonal, demand for products such as fruit or meat are year-round, necessitating the need for additional storage as a buffer. As a result, centres of production and consumption are further separated leading to increased demand for cold storage logistical hubs. 

Temperature-controlled logistics is critical for food security in Sub- Saharan Africa but the sector in Africa lags the rest of the world due to insufficient investment, a lack of expertise and underdeveloped infrastructure to support cold-chain penetration. The sector is also energy-intensive, requiring stable power and efficient refrigeration systems. The infrastructure gap has resulted in significant post-harvest losses and inadequate food preservation. Temperature-controlled logistics is crucial in addressing this challenge. As Jurie Schoeman, Chief Operating Officer of CCH, explains: “In Africa we’ve got countries that can produce excess food and neighbouring countries where there’s hunger. So, how do we preserve food in one country and move it to the other, or export that and generate some revenue for that country?” 

We believe in CCH’s strategic focus to acquire or develop facilities with enhanced barriers to entry. This approach is rooted in their long-term goal to build a truly pan-African platform through bolt-on acquisitions and organic growth. 

Key achievements to date: 

  • Acquisition of Commercial Cold Storage (CCS), and their six warehouses, from Oceana in April 2023. 
  • Acquisition of Sequence Logistics in July 2023 and integrating the associated warehouses with the six from CCS to create the CCH platform. 
  • Operationalisation of greenfield development CCH Greenbushes in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) in August 2024. 
  • Acquisition of iDube Cold Store in KwaZulu-Natal’s Industrial Development Zone, Dube Trade Port in August 2024. 
  • Conversion of 50% of the 28 000-pallet position facility in Epping, Cape Town, to handle fruit exports to the European Union, the East and the United States. “This move,” explains Schoeman, “will also balance seasonal fishing in summer and fruit in winter to ensure optimal utilisation of the warehouse and keeping prices to customers competitive”. 
  • Rollout of a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Warehouse Management System (WMS) to provide advanced customer solutions. 
  • Food Safety Systems Certification (FSSC) across the CCH group to increase operational and food safety compliance. This also reduces the need for some customer audits, thereby saving time, money and resources. 
  • Centralisation of planning and maintenance, with the long-term goal of optimising asset management and infrastructure investment. Sustainability Manager David Baudains explains: “The team has done an enormous amount of work over the last couple of months to formalise a corporate environment and social management system so that they can all have the same set of standards. Implementation will now roll out to all existing business and recent additions.” 
  • The creation of a dashboard to track electricity consumption and other metrics of each warehouse in real time. “This allows CCH to optimise electricity demand and consumption, and we are on track to achieve one of our medium-term goals to reduce energy consumption by 18% within 24 months,” says Schoeman. The system can also track energy intensity while it allows the team to account for overall differences in consumption that might incur. 
  • In line with AIIM’s sustainability focus areas, we are particularly pleased to note that in what is a traditionally male-dominated industry, women now make up approximately 17% of the CCH workforce and represent 29% of all levels of management. Across the group, key roles are filled by women who continue to contribute to the success of CCH. 
  • Over the past two years, AIIM and the CCH team have focussed on various ESG aspects including policies, procedures and standard  which are applicable to all businesses under the CCH banner. This covers energy efficiency, carbon management, waste and water management, food security and community engagement. Energy Partners is playing a critical role in assisting CCH to formalise its approach in line with International Finance Corporation standards. 

Looking ahead 

  • Plans are advanced to expand on the current 5MW of rooftop solar and actively explore wheeling options to increase renewable energy penetration. Wheeling involves the transmission of electricity, mainly renewable energy, from one location to another across the grid. 
  • CCH’s goal to reduce energy consumption by 18% in 24 months is on track, thanks to further energy efficiency projects. We expect this goal to be met by December 2025. 

As CCH continues to grow and diversify the business from predominantlyfrozen only to chilled product lines like fruit, and other value-added services, AIIM is cognisant of the increasing impact this will have on the environment in which CCH operates. A prime example is electricity demand, which is significantly higher for foodstuffs such as fruit, compared to frozen products. As a result, CCH’s prioritisation of plant efficiency is both strategically sound and essential from a sustainability perspective.

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