Whenever goods have to stay at a set temperature on the move, a refrigerated truck or van does the job. Temperature control keeps products safe and fresh for longer, and lets a business deliver further than it could otherwise. Here are the main uses, and what each one needs from the vehicle.
Meat, fish and dairy
The best-known use. Fresh meat, fish and dairy travel chilled, at 0 to 5°C; by law chilled food must be kept at 8°C or below. Food businesses also have to follow the food hygiene regulations for their nation: the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013, the Food Hygiene (Wales) Regulations 2006 and the Food Hygiene Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006. See our vans for butchers, fish and seafood and grocery and dairy.
Drinks
Drinks suppliers deliver stock ready to serve, in a chiller. Drinks are heavy, so payload matters: a chiller’s 50mm lining takes less space and weight than a freezer’s 75mm, and we check the payload after conversion against a full load. See our beverage delivery vans.
Catering and food service
Caterers prepare food in their own kitchen and carry it to the venue at a steady temperature. Many choose a van with a bulkhead, giving a chilled compartment and an ambient or frozen one. See our catering vans and how to choose a refrigerated van for catering.
Flowers
Cut flowers travel best at 2 to 5°C. Heat makes them wilt, and frost spoils them too, so florists and flower wholesalers use chiller vans, ideally with a unit that can heat as well as cool. See fridge vans for florists.
Ice cream and frozen food
Frozen food needs -18°C or colder. Ice cream and anything that must stay hard-frozen needs deep freeze, down to -25°C, which our freezer conversions can reach with the right unit. See our ice cream vans and freezer vans.
Medicines
Vaccines are kept between +2°C and +8°C from the manufacturer to the point they’re used, and some pharmaceutical products must stay frozen. Medicines can be damaged by getting too cold as well as too warm, and their temperatures have to be recorded. See transporting pharmaceuticals in vans and our pharmaceutical vans.
Truck or van?
Most businesses that need temperature control use a refrigerated panel van, from a small Mercedes Citan to a long-wheelbase Sprinter. For bulkier or heavier loads, a box body on a chassis cab, often with a tail-lift, is the step up. We sell both, and we can source or build what isn’t in stock.
See our fridge vans and freezer vans, read 20 business ideas that need refrigerated vans, or call us on 01444 245555.
