Following the acquisition of three South American airfreight forwarders specialised in perishables logistics in January, Kuehne + Nagel has now entered
into an agreement to acquire 75 per cent of the shares of New Zealand based Cooltainer, a leading reefer operator.
Founded in 1967, Cooltainer, headquartered in Christchurch, brings with
it in-depth knowledge and experience in handling perishable products. Its
45 employees operate a dedicated branch network throughout Australia
and New Zealand. Cooltainer provides a comprehensive door-to-door
service for temperature sensitive cargo (e.g. fruits, meat, frozen vegetables
and meals) in the South Pacific region. It covers very successfully
niche markets such as the Trans-Tasman and Pacific Islands trades, and
offers customers a variety of different sailing opportunities and a reliable
supply of equipment.
"New Zealand is of key importance for perishables exports to Australia
and the South Pacific Islands," said Peter Ulber, Executive Vice President
Sea & Air Logistics, Kuehne + Nagel International AG. "We are very
pleased to join forces with Cooltainer to further strengthen our regional
market position through this strategically focused product offering. Cooltainer's activities ideally complement our operations in Australia and New
Zealand and will give us the opportunity to generate synergies to the
benefit of our customers."
"We are excited about the opportunities that being part of the worldwide
Kuehne + Nagel Group will offer the Cooltainer customers and staff," said
Stuart Grant, CEO and shareholder of Cooltainer. "Demand for New
Zealand and Australian food products will continue to be strong and the
performance of the cool chain service providers is crucial in ensuring
exporters achieve maximum return."