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The Georgia Ports Authority is preparing for a growing trade in citrus and other chilled imports by adding ocean carrier routes and terminal services to support cold chain logistics. Officials are expecting the season’s first arrivals of citrus from South Africa, South America and other markets to cross the Port of Savannah’s docks in May and June.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations at the Port of Savannah are expanding to include a 4,000 square foot refrigerated space for chilled cargo inspections. It’s part of a new 300,000-square-foot facility on Garden City Terminal, doubling the size of CBP’s previous location. Opened in February, the $44 million facility is being expanded to support temperature-controlled cargoes that need inspections by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“This year, we will be serving a broader portfolio of citrus customers and cold chain shippers. We’ve added new vessel services to citrus markets and we have a new $4.5 million temperature-controlled, CBP inspection site opening in June, which is on our Garden City Terminal for ease of use,” said GPA President and CEO Griff Lynch.

The new temperature-controlled section of the facility offers produce importers the option to have chilled cargo inspected on-port or off-dock at refrigerated warehouses. A dozen Savannah area businesses operate nearly 2.4 million square feet of refrigerated warehousing, including 1.64 million square feet for frozen cargo and over 752,000 square feet of chilled space, offering Southeast cold chains numerous supply chain choices to serve customers.

Georgia Ports is hosting a new service from ocean carrier MSC, linking West and South Africa to Savannah with a transit time of 26 days. Port officials said customers asked for the new service.

Officials said Seaboard Marine restored direct, weekly container service to Savannah in January, strengthening supply chain connections between the U.S. Southeast, Latin America and the Caribbean. The first northbound vessel arrived January 7th from Colombia with stops in Cartagena, Barranquilla, Santa Marta and Rio Haina, Dominican Republic. The service offers Wednesday arrivals and departures in Savannah, improved access to Colombian and Caribbean markets, and connections to West Coast South America via transshipment. Georgia Ports officials say the service expands cold-chain market opportunities for customers.

In total, Savannah offers 39 ocean carrier services, with the most direct connections of any South Atlantic or Gulf Coast port to global markets.

“As we increase our suite of cold chain services, we are seeing steady growth, with more fresh produce customers viewing Savannah as an attractive U.S. gateway with multiple options,” said Flavio Batista, Chief Commercial Officer.

The import trade supports the efficient movement of Georgia agricultural exports, providing a steady supply of refrigerated containers to key markets. GPA leads the nation in frozen poultry, handling nearly 40 percent of exports