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From contacts to community – How GCCA is turning collaboration into action

By Eamonn Ryan

Opening the GCCA Africa 2026 Conference in Johannesburg, GCCA Africa chairman Newton Matope (CEO of Cold Solutions Africa) challenged delegates to judge the alliance not by its networking events, but by the outcomes it delivers on the ground. Speaking to industry leaders, investors, and policymakers, he pointed to early proof that GCCA in Africa is moving from a loose web of contacts to a true working community – one that can train scarce technical talent, tackle port bottlenecks, and help modernise outdated regulations across the continent.Read More »From contacts to community – How GCCA is turning collaboration into action

Time for dialogue – Three practical asks to build Africa’s cold chain together

By Eamonn Ryan

“Your seat is waiting.” That was the promise made to participants at GCCA Africa 2026 – not just as conference attendees, but as co-architects of the continent’s cold chain future. Turning that promise into reality means moving from passive attendance to active participation.Read More »Time for dialogue – Three practical asks to build Africa’s cold chain together

Beyond isolation – Why Africa’s cold chain can’t afford to operate alone

By Eamonn Ryan

Speaking at the GCCA Africa 2026 Conference in Johannesburg, GCCA Africa chairman Newton Matope (CEO of Cold Solutions Africa) warned that too much of Africa’s cold chain still operates in isolation – outside formal industry structures and without a collective voice. In his opening remarks, she argued that while individual facilities may cope day to day, the continent will only achieve true resilience, influence, and growth when operators, investors, and regulators begin to act as an integrated ecosystem rather than a scattering of standalone businesses.Read More »Beyond isolation – Why Africa’s cold chain can’t afford to operate alone

Inside the Africa Regional Council – Four priorities shaping the continent’s cold chain

By Eamonn Ryan

At the GCCA Africa 2026 Conference in Johannesburg, GCCA Africa chairman Newton Matope (CEO of Cold Solutions Africa) made it clear that Africa’s cold chain future will be shaped not in side conversations, but through structured, sustained collaboration. His opening address introduced the newly formed Africa Regional Council as the engine for that collaboration – an industry-led body tasked with turning real-world challenges around energy, skills, capital and regulation into a focused, continent-wide agenda.Read More »Inside the Africa Regional Council – Four priorities shaping the continent’s cold chain

There is no single African market – Why the cold chain must reflect a mosaic

By Eamonn Ryan

At the GCCA Africa 2026 Conference in Johannesburg, GCCA Africa chairman Newton Matope (CEO of Cold Solutions Africa) opened proceedings with a clear message: Africa is not a single market, but a mosaic of diverse realities, risks and opportunities. Speaking to an audience of cold chain operators, investors, policymakers and partners from across the continent, he set out a vision for how the industry must connect these fragmented “islands of infrastructure” into a single, resilient cold chain capable of underpinning Africa’s food security and intra-African trade.Read More »There is no single African market – Why the cold chain must reflect a mosaic

India: When the reefer becomes the treatment chamber

By Eamonn Ryan

The regulatory breakthrough creates an opportunity.

The hardest part starts when the container leaves the cold store, but it also creates a demanding engineering challenge. For an in-transit treatment to work, the refrigerated transport system must do more than maintain a nominal setpoint. The fruit itself has to reach the required treatment temperature, and that temperature has to be maintained for the required period.Read More »India: When the reefer becomes the treatment chamber

A market access barrier removed from the SA-India cold chain

By Eamonn Ryan

The significance of India’s decision becomes clearer when viewed against the history of the market.

South Africa and India have been working for years to resolve the phytosanitary and logistical barriers affecting citrus exports. The Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa (CGA) reported that negotiations over in-transit cold treatment had been continuing since 2017, with trial consignments forming part of the process.Read More »A market access barrier removed from the SA-India cold chain