Refrigerated logistics is vital in the marine industry chainespecially in Galicia, given the dense business ecosystem that fuels it. The spread of fish processing facilities and the increase in demand for this service pushed the sector into production. Strong investments with larger installed capacity in recent years In addition to new internal organization or digitalization systems for groups such as Frigoríficos de Galicia (Frigalsa), Frialia, Hermanos Fernández Ibáñez or Protea.
But the process they now face is very different and they warn that the lack of crop rotation will put them under strong pressure in a scenario already complicated by a plastic tax or an increase in energy costs. “Insurers have been increasing coverage rates for several years and now they want new requirements,” laments Darío Iglesias, CEO of Frigoríficos de Vigo (Frivigo). It refers to: installation of water sprinklers or fountains in warehouses, in rooms exceeding twenty degrees below zero. A procedure requested by insurance companiesAcknowledge all voices consulted in this sector for renewal of policies.
There is consensus among companies: “The risk is almost zero, this puts us in a difficult situation”. As Iglesias summarized, refrigerators are “biased” from the installation of these fire extinguishers, but “not inside the rooms.” And they put forward various reasons. The first is the reduction in storage space, which will lead to lower capacity and billing.
1. Insurance obligation
When policies expire, insurance companies request that these devices be kept ready for renewal. They need to be installed on cameras.
2. Cost up to 150 Euros per field
H Depending on the size of the cold storage, the industry foresees an investment of up to three million euros per company.
3. One more step towards profitability
Installing sprinklers will reduce the capacity of rooms by up to 25%, and this will be compounded by energy costs, policies, lower turnover or an increase in the plastic tax.
“The distance between us fountains It needs to be more than one meter, so vWe will lose 20 to 25 percent of our income”, at a time when margins are falling across the industry. They attribute this obligation of insurers to North American regulations now imported into Spain: “There they are installed in dry warehouses, but logically they have nothing to do with refrigerators.” Iglesias explains that when policies expire, companies are notified of this requirement to apply for a new policy.
Product degradation
In the second example, they talk about the direct impact on goods belonging to a third party who pays for this cold vacuum. “If irrigation is skipped for any reason, the underlying crop will be damaged. “This is a net loss of profitability for us,” but also harms its customers. The investment is also big, although it’s not the “biggest concern” for Frivigo’s president. Depending on the size of the premises and taking into account the cost of up to approximately 150 euros per area, The payout could reach three million euros.
At the meeting organized by the expert magazine Fishing IndustriesNicolás García, director of Protea, estimated that there are meat processing plants that are considering reflecting the increase in their costs into the rates. “Customers also need to understand this situation. “A number of additional costs have now emerged due to the investments required by insurance companies and increased premiums, and both these investments and premiums have had a greater impact on our cost structure.”
On the other hand, the scenario faced by the sector is need to improve associative texture. The organization that represents them in the province (APEF) has been paralyzed for years. “We meet regularly to share our problems, and now we want to reactivate that,” says Iglesias.