A Brief History of Refrigerated Transport
Without this invention, the transportation of perishable goods, such as food or medicines, over long distances would not be possible. The idea of having access to fresh vegetables, fruits, or fish in our local store would remain a dream. Today, we’ll look at the origins and development of temperature-controlled transport.
Refrigerated Transport: Early Experiments of the “Ice King” and the First Refrigerator
Humanity discovered long ago that storing perishable food in cool conditions helps it stay fresh longer. However, it wasn’t until the early 19th century that the first attempts were made to use low temperatures to transport food products over longer distances. Naturally, these experiments relied on natural sources of cold, in the form of large blocks of ice. In 1806, American entrepreneur Frederic Tudor, known to his contemporaries as the “Ice King,” successfully transported ice by sea from the USA to the Caribbean. Just a few decades later, crates of ice were being used in Europe to transport fresh fish by land (in horse-drawn wagons, by train) and by sea. However, the distances had to remain relatively short for a simple reason: ice has the property of melting over time.
The year 1877 marked a breakthrough in both food storage and its transportation over longer distances. German inventor Carl von Linde created the first industrial refrigerator, which could maintain low temperatures over extended periods without the need for large amounts of ice. However, ice wasn’t entirely obsolete yet. By the end of the 19th century, ice blocks were still used in insulated railway wagons and horse-drawn carts, which could maintain cold temperatures longer and use less ice. As a result, the distances over which food could be transported under refrigerated conditions increased once again.
In the first decade of the 20th century, the first refrigerated trucks appeared on the streets of American and European cities. Since ice was still the cooling agent, these vehicles were primarily used for transporting meat, fish, and milk in urban areas—over short distances. However, just a few decades later, a true revolution in refrigerated transport was about to take place.
Refrigerated Transport: The Groundbreaking Refrigeration Unit and Post-War Technological Expansion
In 1938, two Americans, Joseph Numero and Frederick McKinley Jones, founded the U.S. Thermo Control Company (later renamed Thermo King), and two years later, they patented their groundbreaking invention: a refrigeration unit that could be mounted on a truck. With its introduction, the vision of a “farm-to-table” supply chain was fully realized—meat, dairy, fruits, and vegetables could be transported by road (and later by rail, with refrigerated wagons) over any distance, in any season. Thanks to Thermo King, fresh food not only became widely available, but its prices also dropped, as the costs of transportation decreased significantly. With refrigeration units being produced by other companies as well, mounted on trucks and rail wagons, the food industry experienced rapid growth after World War II. In the following two post-war decades, temperature control systems were introduced, allowing precise temperature management inside refrigerated trailers throughout the entire journey. This period also saw the expansion of international food trade, which in turn increased the demand for refrigerated truck transport.
Refrigerated Transport: Towards Globalization and a Zero-Emission Future
Globalization processes further highlighted the importance of international food transport. Refrigeration systems were also introduced into standardized containers, which could be transported by sea and then by rail and trucks, marking another leap in the flexibility and efficiency of temperature-controlled transport. The development of digital technologies also led to more advanced and effective temperature control systems, enabling better monitoring of transport conditions and faster real-time responses to potential issues.
Sustainability and the pursuit of zero-emissions have also entered the realm of refrigerated transport. Not only are hybrid, electric, and hydrogen-powered trucks being used, but the refrigeration units mounted on them are also powered in this way, further contributing to reducing the carbon footprint of the transportation industry.