Calls for new conventional reefer vessel investment dismissed on grounds of cost

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A leading banana shipper has locked horns with the head of Maersk Line’s refrigerated business over the challenges posed by the looming retirement of many of the fruit industry’s ageing conventional reefer vessels.

Kevin Bragg, managing director of Bonita Europe, which grows bananas in Ecuador and controls 7.8% of the European banana market, said that while most of the key banana trade lanes have been “lost” to container lines, western and southern Europe remain best served by dedicated reefer ships.

Speaking at ...