Refrigerated Transport Yatala & Ormeau — Chilled Freight for Food and Beverage Manufacturers

We carry chilled and frozen freight for food and beverage manufacturers and distributors in Yatala, Stapylton and Ormeau. Finished goods go out by the pallet, north towards Brisbane or south down the Gold Coast, and chilled ingredients come in. Vehicles range from a one-pallet van to a semi-trailer.

Between two markets on the M1

The Yatala industrial area sits on the M1 Pacific Motorway between Beenleigh and Coomera. Logan and Brisbane are to the north. The rest of the Gold Coast is to the south. A factory here can supply both from one dock.

Food and beverage production is a large part of what happens in these estates: brewing and drinks, baked goods, processed and packaged food, and the distributors that serve them. We also deliver chilled and frozen ingredients into these factories from suppliers elsewhere in South East Queensland.

Product must be cold before it is loaded

This is the point most often missed by a business that makes its own product. A batch that came off the line this morning may not be down to temperature by the afternoon pickup.

Refrigerated vehicles are designed to hold the temperature product is loaded at. They are not designed to chill it. A pallet loaded at 9°C will arrive at about 9°C, and a receiver checking for 5°C or below can refuse it.

1. 1Bring the product down in your own cool room or blast chiller.
2. 2Probe a carton from the centre of the pallet, not the outside layer.
3. 3Record the reading and the time. A food business handling potentially hazardous food must have a thermometer accurate to ±1°C.
4. 4Book the pickup for after the product has reached temperature, not for when production finishes.

Heavy pallets: beverages and liquids

Drinks are dense. A truck carrying beverages often reaches its weight limit before its floor is full, so the pallet count on the fleet page is only half the answer. Payload depends on the vehicle, and a refrigerated body is heavier than a dry one.

Declare weights accurately. A business that consigns goods by heavy vehicle is a party in the Chain of Responsibility under the Heavy Vehicle National Law, and an under-declared pallet is the consignor’s problem as well as the carrier’s.

North to Brisbane, south to the coast

Northbound freight is mostly pallets for warehouses and distribution centres in Logan and Brisbane, which receive by booked time slot. Southbound freight is more often smaller drops to venues, retailers and cafes from Pimpama and Coomera down the coast.

The M1 is busy at peak times in both directions. Book delivery slots that leave realistic travel time. A deadline that could only be met by speeding should not be set.

Queensland summers add to the load. A hot dock and an open door put more heat into a pallet than the same stop in winter, so keep staging time short and have the receiver ready before the truck arrives.

Chilled and frozen lines from one factory

A manufacturer with both chilled and frozen lines does not have to send two trucks. A multi-temperature vehicle carries both behind a movable bulkhead, with frozen product nearest the evaporator. Tell us the split so the zones are set before loading.

Small makers: a few pallets at a time

Not every producer here fills a semi-trailer. A refrigerated van takes one pallet equivalent, up to 1 tonne, and a small truck typically takes 2–4 pallets. A few pallets can also travel as a part load, sharing a larger vehicle with compatible freight. A van loads through rear barn doors at the kerb, which suits a venue or shop without a dock.

When an ingredient shortage is about to stop a line, urgent refrigerated transport is available across South East Queensland, subject to what dispatch has free at the time.

Getting a Yatala or Ormeau quote

We quote each job. Price depends on the vehicle, distance, number of drops and temperature; our guide to refrigerated transport costs in Queensland explains each factor. Send the details and we reply within 24 hours, often the same day for routine routes.