Americold Realty Trust is announcing plans to develop its first facility through a strategic collaboration with Canadian Pacific Kansas City to co-locate Americold warehouse facilities on the CPKC network.

“Americold’s selection of Kansas City for its new facility is another example of Missouri’s ability to attract leading businesses,” said Governor Mike Parson. “This company’s decision speaks to the value of our strategic location, skilled workforce, and superior infrastructure. We look forward to Americold’s success as it strengthens supply chains for international trade and brings new investment to the Kansas City region.”

Americold is investing $127 million in the 335,000-square-foot facility in Kansas City, Mo. The company plans to create nearly 190 new jobs in the region.

“We are excited to kick off our strategic collaboration with CPKC through our new Kansas City cold storage facility, expanding Americold’s presence in an important U.S. transportation hub,” said George Chappelle, chief executive officer at Americold. “Combining our cold storage capabilities with CPKC’s extensive rail network enables Americold to deliver a differentiated offering to support more customers across North America. We look forward to further collaboration with CPKC to provide world-class service to more customers and strengthen the food supply chain.”

“Americold’s Kansas City facility marks the first of many new Americold warehouse facilities we intend to see built on the CPKC network as part of our strategic collaboration,” said Keith Creel, CPKC president and CEO. “Our unmatched Mexico Midwest Express (MMX) premium intermodal service will enable Americold customers to transport goods between the U.S. and Mexico more efficiently and effectively than ever before. We look forward to continuing to grow with Americold as we support the cold storage ecosystem.”

The new facility will support CPKC’s MMX service, North America's only single-line rail-service offering for refrigerated shippers between U.S. Midwest markets and Mexico. It will also enable more seamless and efficient service for MMX customers. By combining CPKC’s fleet of TempPro temperature-protected intermodal containers with Americold’s cold-storage logistics expertise, both companies will be able to help customers bypass significant truck congestion at the U.S.-Mexico border and reduce transit times, transport costs and food waste.

Pending local approvals, the company plans to begin construction in the first half of 2024.

Missouri Partnership, a public-private economic development organization focused on attracting new jobs and investment to the state and promoting Missouri’s business strengths, worked with several partners to attract Americold to Kansas City, including the City of Kansas City, Economic Development Corp. of Kansas City, Mo., KC SmartPort, Missouri Department of Economic Development, Missouri One Start, Evergy and Spire.

Source: Americold Realty Trust