Reefer container loading and the pallet pattern inside it decide what condition fruit and vegetables arrive in. A consignment held at 0–2 °C in the cold store still spoils within five days if the stack blocks the air path. This guide follows the chain from carton size to the loading record you hand the buyer.
From carton size to pallet footprint
The standard export carton measures 30 × 40 × 14 cm. A euro pallet measures 80 × 120 cm. The two fit without waste: two cartons across the 80 cm side, three along the 120 cm side, eight cartons per layer and no gap left over.
Two pallet footprints dominate export trade: the euro pallet at 80 × 120 cm and the industrial pallet at 100 × 120 cm. Most European buyers specify euro pallets because their racking is built to that width. Heat treatment to ISPM 15, stamped on the block, is a separate requirement and is checked at the border.
How many pallets fit in a container
A reefer holds less than a dry box of the same length. Wall insulation and the refrigeration unit at the front take up room. Typical figures:
- 20′ reefer: roughly 5.4 m of internal length, 9–10 euro pallets
- 40′ reefer: roughly 11.5 m of internal length, 20–23 euro pallets
- 40′ high cube reefer: internal height around 2.50 m, about 67 m³, 23 euro pallets
Figures differ between carriers and models, so ask the line for the spec sheet of the actual unit before building the plan.
Maximum payload on a 40′ reefer sits around 26,000–28,000 kg, but fresh produce rarely reaches it. The box fills by volume long before it fills by weight, and a typical load lands between 20 and 24 tonnes. Road weight limits bind as well, since the tractor unit running to the port has to comply with them.
The air path
Cold air leaves the unit through the T-shaped floor channels, travels under the pallets, rises through the cargo and returns along the ceiling. Break that loop and the machine keeps running while the produce warms up.
Three rules keep it open:
- Never block the floor channels. Choose a pallet base that lets air pass underneath.
- Stay below the red load line. The red mark on the container wall shows the return-air space at the ceiling. Stack above it and the air has nowhere to go.
- Leave a gap at the doors. Cargo pressed against the doors cuts off the return path, and cartons in that zone run several degrees warmer than the rest.
Vent holes on the carton sides also need to line up from layer to layer. Once offset, the air column breaks.
Stack height and crush damage
How many layers you can build depends on what the fruit can carry. Citrus and apples take more layers than soft produce; strawberries, figs and ripening peaches need a lower stack.
The fruit itself is the measurement. Open a bottom carton: pressure marks on the shoulders mean the stack is too high. Make that check during loading, not when the buyer opens the door. The carton walls should carry the load, and if cartons do not sit squarely on each other the weight moves off the wall and onto the produce.
Temperature regimes vary by product. Stone fruit wants 0–2 °C, oranges and mandarins 4–8 °C, peppers 7–9 °C, aubergines 10–12 °C, grapefruit and lemons 10–14 °C. Only products that share a regime belong in the same container.
Securing the load
A container never stops moving at sea, and an unsecured pallet tips and crushes whatever is beneath it.
- Stretch wrap turns the pallet into one body. Wrap the bottom three layers down to the deck so load and pallet move together.
- Corner boards stand vertically at the four corners, spreading the wrap tension and protecting the edges of the top cartons.
- Dunnage and air bags fill the gaps between pallets. Anything wider than 10 cm gets filled.
Wrapping must not seal the vent holes; perforated film or deliberate gaps solve this.
Pre-cooling and container temperature
A reefer unit holds temperature; it does not pull it down, and it is not built to chill warm cargo. Bring the produce to its target temperature in the cold store before it goes near the container.
Run the container down to setpoint before loading as well. Keep the loading bay cold and the doors open as briefly as possible. When loading finishes, read the unit’s return-air temperature and record it.
Documenting the load
Buyers want to know how the container was built before they see the goods. Prepare these for every shipment:
- Pallet list: pallet number, product, variety, carton count, gross and net weight
- Loading photographs: empty container, first row of pallets, completed stack, closed doors with the seal number
- Unit settings: setpoint, fresh-air vent position, humidity setting where used
- Data logger serial number and its position inside the container
If a claim arises, these records shorten the argument. When the photograph shows a clear door gap, a temperature deviation has to be explained somewhere else.
About Hatipoğlu Tarım
Hatipoğlu Tarım was founded in Antalya in 2002 and exports fruit and vegetables under the FİNİKE brand. The range covers 128 products shipped to 42 countries. Five facilities — Serik, Kepez, Mavikent (Kumluca), Yenişehir (Bursa) and Alaşehir (Manisa) — spread the harvest across the whole year. ISO 9001, ISO 22000, ISO 10002, GLOBALG.A.P. IFA and GRASP cover the growing and dispatch process.
Send us your destination and product list, and we will work out the loading plan with you.
