Atlanta-based cloud supply chain company Stord is to use Fresh Del Monte’s cold storage infrastructure as an expanded offering to brands requiring temperature or humidity-controlled logistics.

Fresh Del Monte has 22 facilities that are available to Stord customers and integrated with Stord’s cloud technology, providing an option for brands requiring temperature or humidity-controlled logistics.

Demand for cold storage is increasing rapidly as grocery sales via ecommerce channels continue to rise. As of last autumn, refrigerated and frozen foods accounted for 9% and 13%, respectively, of total ecommerce grocery sales, up from 4% for each category in early 2020.

While most brands still struggle to piece together disparate logistics and disconnected technology, with its cloud supply chain, Stord offers all the physical logistics and digital technology that brands need in a scalable utility-based model. Now, brands selling frozen, refrigerated and chilled products can achieve the same operations that hundreds of Stord customers – such as BodyArmor, Thrasio, Dollar General, Native and Advance Auto Parts – enjoy.

“Our customers trust Stord to support their most critical operations,” said Stord CEO Sean Henry. “Whenever we bring a new partner into our network, we make sure that they uphold the highest standards of reliability and quality. Fresh Del Monte is a well-respected leader in the cold storage space, and we have complete confidence that this relationship will be a big win for our customers.”

Florida-based Fresh Del Monte has been looking for additional ways to grow its distribution network and leverage underused assets, including shipping vessels, transportation vehicles, warehouses and now its cold storage infrastructure. Through the relationship, Fresh Del Monte will provide Stord customers access to its large-scale, complex supply chain infrastructure and cold storage facilities.

While Fresh Del Monte is known for providing fresh produce, it has other business lines that are powerhouses on their own, particularly its logistics network. The company owns Network Shipping, a third-party shipping network that transports goods across the world, and Tricont Trucking and Tricont Logistics, which use the company’s ships, ports and temperature-controlled warehouses throughout 34 facilities in North America.

“We’re proud to work with Stord to bring our state-of-the-art cold infrastructure to scaling businesses,” said Fresh Del Monte CEO Mohammad Abu-Ghazaleh. “We have an impressive logistics infrastructure, and it only makes sense to collaborate with a company like Stord as we continue to leverage our assets and grow our distribution network.”

The announcement cements Fresh Del Monte’s mission to leverage its underused assets, and it comes on the heels of Stord increasing its network capacity and extending its series D round to over $200m in funding at a valuation of $1.3bn with an investment led by Franklin Templeton.

Led by former operators from Amazon, XPO and Manhattan Associates, Stord is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, and backed by investors, including Kleiner Perkins, Bond, Franklin Templeton, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, D1 Capital, Salesforce Ventures, Susa Ventures and Lineage Logistics.