Each year, Chile exports tens of thousands of containers of cherries during a narrow harvest window between November and January. With nearly all volumes destined for China, and strict cold treatment protocols required, the margin for error is small. Timely, accurate data is essential not only to meet import requirements but also to prevent waste and protect value.This case study highlights how Global Reefers a Chilean freight forwarder specialised in temperature-controlled shipments, addressed the challenges of managing high-volume cherry exports during Chile's peak season. By implementing the DCSA Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard in the 2024–2025 season, Global Reefers became the first freight forwarder in Latin America to adopt this approach. Their objective was to streamline data exchange across carriers, reduce manual input, and improve the consistency and timeliness of updates to customers.
Reducing manual workloads across thousands of shipments
Chile’s cherry industry is undergoing rapid growth. In the 2023–2024 season, the country exported over 22,400 containers of cherries, each valued at more than 100,000 US dollars. Approximately 94% of these volumes were bound for China. For the 2024–2025 season, exporters expected a 35% year-on-year increase in total volume, rising from 90 million boxes to an estimated 130 million. This surge put additional pressure on logistics teams and heightened the need for reliable, timely data.Prior to implementation, Global Reefers relied on manual processes to collect, enter and verify reefer data from each carrier. During cherry season, the Global Reefers operations team handled up to 7,000 containers over five weeks, each requiring temperature validation, cold treatment confirmation, and regular status updates. Communicating with each carrier individually meant data was formatted differently, updates were delayed, and much of the work had to be repeated across systems.“To ensure accurate information exchange across carriers, my team had to input all data manually – a process that becomes even more burdensome during busy periods,” said Rodrigo Reyes, Chief Technology Officer at Global Reefers.This manual process created operational strain and limited visibility. Cold treatment data is particularly critical for cherry exports to China, which imposes strict phytosanitary requirements. Each container must remain below -1°C for a minimum of 15 days to prevent fruit fly infestation. Onboard sensors track temperature, humidity, and other parameters throughout the journey. If a container's readings fall outside acceptable limits or delays occur, the treatment may need to be restarted or the cargo rerouted to another market. Without standardised, real-time access to this data, Global Reefers could not reliably provide customers with the timely information needed to make those decisions.
Implementing the Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard
In December 2024, Global Reefers adopted the Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard to replace fragmented manual processes with structured data exchange. The goal was to ensure cherries could travel thousands of miles to markets like Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Busan, arriving as fresh as the day they were picked, on schedule, and with full visibility into their status throughout the journey. The DCSA standard provides a common framework for reefer status updates, making it easier to integrate information from multiple carriers and monitoring systems. The Reefer Events 1.0 Beta is a DCSA data standard that defines a common set of event types and data elements for tracking refrigerated container (reefer) shipments. It allows organisations, like Global Reefers to exchange structured, timely updates on key parameters such as temperature, humidity, and equipment status, enabling better coordination and operational transparency across different systems and carriers.Global Reefers also integrated Hapag-Lloyd LIVE, Hapag-Lloyd’s intelligent reefer monitoring platform, using a direct API connection. Their system is now automatically updated twice daily with data including temperature, humidity, oxygen and CO₂ levels, nitrogen, and air exchange rates. This API-based approach eliminates duplication and ensures consistent data quality.Implementation took one week. “Once our systems were prepared, DCSA provided comprehensive and highly useful standard documentation, including resources like GitHub and Swagger. Additionally, the Hapag-Lloyd team in Hamburg offered invaluable support throughout the process” said Reyes.The Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard works in tandem with Hapag-Lloyd’s HL LIVE to ensure that structured data can be reliably extracted and shared across systems, using common formats. The standard can operate independently or in combination with other DCSA APIs, such as DCSA’s Track & Trace 3.0 Beta and IoT Events 1.0 Beta 1 APIs, to provide broader end-to-end visibility.
Impact on visibility, efficiency and customer service
Since adopting the standard, Global Reefers has reduced manual processing time by an estimated 60 hours per month. The team can now provide customers with real-time container updates, improving both service quality and responsiveness during seasonal peaks.“Through the implementation of the DCSA Reefer Events Beta standard, we can now optimise our customers’ experiences by providing timely, accurate data that empowers them to make informed decisions at every stage of the vessel’s journey,” said Reyes.For cargo owners such as Dole Chile, the impact is also tangible. “Standardisation is crucial for us as a multinational company, as we receive data from multiple sources across different regions,” said Miguel Angel Vidal, Technology and Systems Manager at Dole Chile. “By adopting the DCSA Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard, Global Reefers has significantly improved data consistency, making it easier for us to monitor and manage our reefer shipments efficiently.”Learn more
To find out more about the DCSA Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard, visit https://dcsa.org/standards/track-and-trace/documentation-reefer-commercial-events
How Global Reefers used DCSA’s Reefer Events 1.0 Beta standard to streamline cherry exports