Building a scalable cold-chain infrastructure requires more than refrigeration—it demands precise logistics, resilient design, and a strategic global network. At CFI Perishables, we recognize that the foundation of reliable cold-chain logistics rests on an intelligent network design that integrates proximity to key transportation gateways, well-equipped storage facilities, and robust carrier connectivity.
Commodity Forwarders, Inc., offers a comprehensive cool chain focus for your perishable shipments, featuring a monitoring sensor option and absolute visibility for your cargo’s entire chain of custody through our track-n-trace feature. By implementing CFI’s layered approach to the cool chain, every shipment is checked, reported, and protected.
You can trust in CFI’s time-tested cool chain strategy to reduce temperature excursions and deliver your product to market as intact, fresh, or frozen as possible.
What It Takes to Scale Cold-Chain Logistics
Specialized Infrastructure
- Purpose-built cold storage warehouses with state-of-the-art insulation and eco-conscious refrigerants,
- Refrigerated trucks, containers, and air freight options for multimodal consistency,
- Custom packaging that maintains product temperature from origin to destination.
Real-Time Visibility
- IoT sensors and GPS trackers provide live monitoring of temperature, location, and humidity,
- Enables a fast response to temperature deviations, reducing the risk of spoilage.
Smart Data & Automation
CFI understands that warehousing items for human consumption requires being aware of sanitation, temperature excursion, the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), HACCP, and good handling practices. Our Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, and Honolulu facilities are also PRIMUS certified.
Bob Gaskill, CFI’s National Compliance Manager, shares, “These rigorous certifications require validation on a regular basis. My responsibilities include going to all of our locations systemwide to ensure compliance, inspect records and work with federal, state, and local regulatory partners with whom we share a vested interest in a safe food supply chain.”
- Cloud-based platforms analyze performance data for route planning and risk prevention,
- AI tools enhance efficiency and reduce human error, particularly in automated warehouse systems.
Strategic Network Design Backed by CFI’s U.S. Presence
Gateway Location Advantage
CFI’s cold-chain operations span major U.S. airport hubs, including LAX, ORD, BOS, SEA, JFK, MIA, and IAH. These sites streamline both inbound imports and outbound exports by offering:
- Immediate access to international flights for seafood, flowers, and pharmaceuticals,
- Short-haul domestic trucking for produce from coastal ports to inland markets,
- Outbound air freight to get U.S.-grown products like proteins and greens to global markets fast.
Regional Hubs & Warehousing
- Facilities located near critical ports and population centers reduce last-mile delivery risks.
- CFI has also invested in the necessary equipment to repackage and cool cargo in our possession before it is exported or continues in transit. We offer forced air chilling and re-icing at select locations with dry or wet ice and gel packs.
- In Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, Miami, Boston, and New York, we have flake ice machines for wet-icing seafood.
- Many of our facilities also operate refrigerated docks, allowing cargo to be kept chilled during the buildup, breakdown, or transfer process.
- Redundancy by design ensures backup power, alternative routing, and rapid recovery in the event of disruptions.
Trucking Connectivity
- CFI provides refrigerated trucking services across the U.S.
- Produce moves by truck through optimized, temperature-controlled lanes to maintain freshness.
- In addition to our point-to-point service, we have regularly scheduled consolidated shipments between Los Angeles and San Francisco, Seattle and Portland, New York, and Boston, as well as weekly services to other destinations.
The Result: A Network That Delivers Trust
With cold-chain capabilities extending from Hawaii to Halifax, and from Mexico to Asia, CFI Perishables offers clients confidence in every chilled shipment. We integrate compliance with FDA and international GDP standards, providing complete visibility and reducing risk at every step.
With cold chain operations at LAX, SEA, JFK, MIA, ORD, IAH, BOS, SFO, ANC, DFW, ITO, KOA, LIH, HNL, OGG, YHZ, YVR, GDL, MEX, and global handoff points, CFI supports a worldwide supply chain that demands both speed and accuracy. We’re not just transporting freight—we’re safeguarding value, freshness, and trust at every step.
Need your perishables to move fast—and arrive fresh? Contact CFI Perishables today to tap into a cold-chain network built for global scale and regional speed.
