North America Cold Chain Logistics Market Size 2026-2030
The north america cold chain logistics market size is valued to increase by USD 136.01 billion, at a CAGR of 15.8% from 2025 to 2030. Escalating demand for biopharmaceutical products and specialized healthcare logistics will drive the north america cold chain logistics market.
Major Market Trends & Insights
- By Type - Refrigerated warehouse segment was valued at USD 72.02 billion in 2024
- By End-user - Meat and seafood segment accounted for the largest market revenue share in 2024
Market Size & Forecast
- Market Opportunities: USD 191.06 billion
- Market Future Opportunities: USD 136.01 billion
- CAGR from 2025 to 2030 : 15.8%
Market Summary
- The cold chain logistics market in North America is evolving rapidly, driven by dual pressures from the pharmaceutical and food and beverage sectors. The expansion of the frozen food supply chain, fueled by consumer demand for convenience and the growth of e-commerce, necessitates sophisticated refrigerated transportation services and temperature-controlled warehousing.
- Simultaneously, advancements in medicine have heightened the need for stringent pharmaceutical cold chain logistics to handle sensitive biologics and vaccines, demanding strict adherence to good distribution practice (GDP) standards. As a result, companies are heavily investing in cold storage automation technology and sustainable cooling technologies to enhance efficiency and reduce their environmental footprint.
- A critical business scenario involves ensuring a new cell therapy treatment maintains its required ultralow temperature from a manufacturing facility in one country to a patient clinic in another. This requires flawless cross-border cold chain compliance, enabled by IoT-enabled supply chain visibility and real-time temperature monitoring, ensuring zero temperature excursions.
- The final leg of this journey, last-mile refrigerated delivery, remains a focal point for innovation to guarantee product integrity right to the point of care, making advanced logistics a cornerstone of modern healthcare delivery.
What will be the Size of the North America Cold Chain Logistics Market during the forecast period?
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How is the North America Cold Chain Logistics Market Segmented?
The north america cold chain logistics industry research report provides comprehensive data (region-wise segment analysis), with forecasts and estimates in "USD million" for the period 2026-2030, as well as historical data from 2020-2024 for the following segments.
- Type
- Refrigerated warehouse
- Refrigerated transportation
- End-user
- Meat and seafood
- Fruits and vegetables
- Dairy and frozen dessert
- Bakery and confectionery
- Others
- Product
- Frozen
- Chilled
- Deep frozen
- Geography
- North America
- US
- Canada
- Mexico
- North America
By Type Insights
The refrigerated warehouse segment is estimated to witness significant growth during the forecast period.
The refrigerated warehouse segment is a foundational component of the cold chain logistics market in North America, providing essential infrastructure for food and pharmaceutical sectors.
These facilities utilize advanced temperature-controlled warehousing and blast freezing and chilling technologies to preserve product integrity. A major driver is the adoption of cold storage automation technology, including automated cold warehouse operations, which enhances throughput and inventory precision.
The investment in smart cold storage facilities and refrigerated warehouse management systems is critical for refrigerated warehouse optimization. Operators are focusing on energy-efficient refrigeration solutions to manage costs.
Advanced facilities now offer ultralow temperature storage for biologics and incorporate aseptic cold-fill processing capabilities, with modern automated systems reducing thermal variance by up to 20%, ensuring superior cold chain infrastructure investment and network design.
The Refrigerated warehouse segment was valued at USD 72.02 billion in 2024 and showed a gradual increase during the forecast period.
Market Dynamics
Our researchers analyzed the data with 2025 as the base year, along with the key drivers, trends, and challenges. A holistic analysis of drivers will help companies refine their marketing strategies to gain a competitive advantage.
- Optimizing the cold chain logistics market in North America involves addressing several interconnected factors. For operators, a primary focus is on reducing energy costs in refrigerated warehouses, a challenge that drives interest in the benefits of automated cold storage warehousing.
- While the initial ROI of electric transport refrigeration units is a key consideration, the long-term gains from sustainable practices in refrigerated transport are compelling. The pharmaceutical sector presents unique hurdles, demanding flawless execution in ensuring temperature integrity for biologics and a comprehensive understanding of the pharmaceutical cold chain validation process.
- The integration of technology is crucial here, with IoT applications in pharmaceutical logistics providing the necessary oversight. For the food sector, the focus is on leveraging blockchain for food supply chain traceability and minimizing food waste with better logistics. This extends to specialized areas like developing effective cold chain packaging for meal kits and optimizing multi-temperature load consolidation for efficiency.
- The challenges of cold chain last-mile delivery and providing cold chain solutions for direct-to-consumer models are intensifying. Firms that successfully improve cold chain visibility with sensors report a 30% reduction in spoilage incidents compared to those without real-time tracking. Navigating the regulatory environment requires expertise in managing cross-border cold chain regulations and compliance with the food safety modernization act.
- Ultimately, success hinges on addressing the labor shortage impact on cold storage, performing thorough risk assessment in temperature-sensitive shipping, and developing strategies for managing fuel price volatility, all while considering the feasibility of integrating ASRS in existing cold warehouses.
What are the key market drivers leading to the rise in the adoption of North America Cold Chain Logistics Industry?
- The escalating demand for biopharmaceutical products and specialized healthcare logistics serves as a key driver for the cold chain logistics market.
- Market expansion is driven by the stringent demands of pharmaceutical cold chain logistics and specialized healthcare logistics, where end-to-end cold chain visibility is non-negotiable.
- The need to maintain biopharmaceutical supply chain integrity for products like biologics and vaccines drives investment in advanced vaccine distribution networks that adhere to good distribution practice (GDP).
- The integration of IoT-enabled supply chain visibility, where real-time temperature monitoring can prevent spoilage events with 99.9% reliability, is critical. Concurrently, the rise of e-commerce is fueling demand for efficient omnichannel grocery fulfillment and temperature-controlled last-mile solutions.
- Effective fleet telematics for cold chain operations can reduce delivery delays by up to 15%, ensuring product safety and supporting pharmaceutical logistics compliance.
What are the market trends shaping the North America Cold Chain Logistics Industry?
- A primary market trend is the strategic proliferation of fully automated cold storage warehousing. This is driven by the pursuit of enhanced operational efficiency and accuracy in temperature-controlled environments.
- Key trends are reshaping the market, led by the adoption of automated storage and retrieval systems that can boost warehouse throughput by over 30%. This shift addresses labor issues and the nearshoring impact on cold chain demand. Another significant trend is the move toward sustainable cooling technologies and sustainable refrigerated transport.
- The deployment of zero-emission refrigeration units is accelerating, with electrified trailers capable of reducing direct emissions by 100% during operation. This focus on refrigerated fleet electrification aligns with stringent environmental regulations. Furthermore, innovations in refrigerated intermodal transport and returnable packaging systems are enhancing efficiency in perishable goods handling and bolstering cold chain quality assurance, reducing waste across the supply chain.
What challenges does the North America Cold Chain Logistics Industry face during its growth?
- Escalating operational expenses, coupled with energy price volatility, present a significant challenge affecting the growth of the cold chain logistics industry.
- Key challenges include navigating complex cross-border cold chain compliance and ensuring cold chain regulatory adherence, where documentation discrepancies can delay shipments by over 24 hours. The high operational costs, with energy representing up to 15% of warehouse expenses, necessitate robust cold chain risk management and supply chain risk mitigation strategies.
- A persistent shortage of skilled labor requires significant investment in cold chain talent development. To counter these issues, firms are leveraging predictive temperature maintenance and sophisticated temperature-sensitive freight management. Adopting a cold chain-as-a-service model through non-asset based cold chain brokerage helps firms gain flexibility, while advanced systems for temperature excursion prevention are critical for maintaining product integrity.
Exclusive Technavio Analysis on Customer Landscape
The north america cold chain logistics market forecasting report includes the adoption lifecycle of the market, covering from the innovator’s stage to the laggard’s stage. It focuses on adoption rates in different regions based on penetration. Furthermore, the north america cold chain logistics market report also includes key purchase criteria and drivers of price sensitivity to help companies evaluate and develop their market growth analysis strategies.
Customer Landscape of North America Cold Chain Logistics Industry
Competitive Landscape
Companies are implementing various strategies, such as strategic alliances, north america cold chain logistics market forecast, partnerships, mergers and acquisitions, geographical expansion, and product/service launches, to enhance their presence in the industry.
Americold Realty Trust Inc. - Delivers integrated temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics, specializing in blast freezing, refrigerated storage, and value-added services for the food and pharmaceutical industries.
The industry research and growth report includes detailed analyses of the competitive landscape of the market and information about key companies, including:
- Americold Realty Trust Inc.
- ArcBest Corp.
- Burris Logistics Co.
- C H Robinson Worldwide Inc.
- Conestoga Cold Storage
- Covenant Logistics Group
- Deutsche Post AG
- FedEx Corp.
- KLLM Transportation Services
- Lineage Inc.
- Marten Transport Ltd.
- NewCold Cooperatief UA
- NFI Industries Inc.
- Prime Inc.
- Tippmann Group
- Total Quality Logistics LLC
- United States Cold Storage
- XPO Inc.
Qualitative and quantitative analysis of companies has been conducted to help clients understand the wider business environment as well as the strengths and weaknesses of key industry players. Data is qualitatively analyzed to categorize companies as pure play, category-focused, industry-focused, and diversified; it is quantitatively analyzed to categorize companies as dominant, leading, strong, tentative, and weak.
Recent Development and News in North america cold chain logistics market
- In October 2024, Lineage Inc. announced the opening of its fully automated cold storage warehouse in Hazle Township, Pennsylvania, enhancing supply chain efficiency with next-generation automation technologies.
- In January 2025, Americold Realty Trust revealed plans to construct a new cold storage import-export hub at Port Saint John in New Brunswick, its first in Canada, through a strategic partnership integrating warehouse, maritime, and rail logistics.
- In March 2025, Americold Realty Trust acquired a temperature-controlled facility in Houston, Texas, for approximately $127 million, a move designed to support customer growth and add 35,700 pallet positions to its portfolio.
- In April 2025, Lineage Inc. announced a significant expansion of its US cold-storage network through a combination of strategic acquisitions and the planned construction of two new fully automated facilities.
Dive into Technavio’s robust research methodology, blending expert interviews, extensive data synthesis, and validated models for unparalleled North America Cold Chain Logistics Market insights. See full methodology.
| Market Scope | |
|---|---|
| Page number | 204 |
| Base year | 2025 |
| Historic period | 2020-2024 |
| Forecast period | 2026-2030 |
| Growth momentum & CAGR | Accelerate at a CAGR of 15.8% |
| Market growth 2026-2030 | USD 136012.1 million |
| Market structure | Fragmented |
| YoY growth 2025-2026(%) | 14.0% |
| Key countries | US, Canada and Mexico |
| Competitive landscape | Leading Companies, Market Positioning of Companies, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks |
Research Analyst Overview
- The cold chain logistics market in North America is undergoing a critical transformation, moving beyond basic refrigerated transportation services and temperature-controlled warehousing. A boardroom-level decision facing every major player is the capital expenditure on cold storage automation technology versus the ongoing cost of labor.
- The adoption of automated storage and retrieval systems is no longer a luxury; it is a competitive necessity for efficient perishable goods handling and supporting the complex foodservice distribution logistics.
- Companies are leveraging these systems for everything from blast freezing and chilling to managing ultralow temperature storage for the pharmaceutical cold chain logistics sector, where cryogenic logistics for biologics is a high-growth area. Implementing a modern refrigerated warehouse management system can reduce energy consumption by up to 40% by optimizing cooling cycles and minimizing heat ingress.
- This shift also impacts transportation, with a focus on zero-emission refrigeration units, multi-temperature trailer technology, and refrigerated intermodal transport to build a resilient and sustainable frozen food supply chain. Ensuring compliance and mitigating risk through validated thermal shipping systems, robust cold chain risk management, predictive temperature maintenance, and good distribution practice (GDP) are paramount.
- Services are also evolving, with offerings like temperature-controlled freight brokerage and cold chain-as-a-service gaining traction.
- Success now depends on integrating everything from phase change materials in thermal packaging solutions to aseptic cold-fill processing, all underpinned by IoT-enabled supply chain visibility and precise cold chain data logging for temperature-sensitive freight management, especially in last-mile refrigerated delivery and refrigerated LTL freight services for both food-grade cold storage and specialized healthcare logistics.
What are the Key Data Covered in this North America Cold Chain Logistics Market Research and Growth Report?
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What is the expected growth of the North America Cold Chain Logistics Market between 2026 and 2030?
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USD 136.01 billion, at a CAGR of 15.8%
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What segmentation does the market report cover?
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The report is segmented by Type (Refrigerated warehouse, and Refrigerated transportation), End-user (Meat and seafood, Fruits and vegetables, Dairy and frozen dessert, Bakery and confectionery, and Others), Product (Frozen, Chilled, and Deep frozen) and Geography (North America)
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Which regions are analyzed in the report?
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North America
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What are the key growth drivers and market challenges?
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Escalating demand for biopharmaceutical products and specialized healthcare logistics, Escalating operational expenses and energy price volatility
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Who are the major players in the North America Cold Chain Logistics Market?
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Americold Realty Trust Inc., ArcBest Corp., Burris Logistics Co., C H Robinson Worldwide Inc., Conestoga Cold Storage, Covenant Logistics Group, Deutsche Post AG, FedEx Corp., KLLM Transportation Services, Lineage Inc., Marten Transport Ltd., NewCold Cooperatief UA, NFI Industries Inc., Prime Inc., Tippmann Group, Total Quality Logistics LLC, United States Cold Storage and XPO Inc.
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Market Research Insights
- Market dynamics are shaped by the tension between rising demand and operational complexities. The proliferation of omnichannel grocery fulfillment is a major driver, yet it heightens the need for efficient last-mile networks. Investment in smart cold storage facilities is accelerating, with automation improving order accuracy to over 99.5%.
- Concurrently, a push for sustainable refrigerated transport is compelling fleets to adopt greener technologies, which can reduce carbon emissions per kilometer by up to 20%. However, these advancements must be balanced against the challenge of stringent cold chain regulatory adherence.
- Achieving end-to-end cold chain visibility remains a key objective, as it directly supports compliance and can reduce product loss rates significantly.
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