Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Market Size, Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Type (Refrigerator & Freezer, Transport Refrigeration, Refrigerated Display Cases, Ice Machines, and Others), By Application (Food & Beverage, Retail Stores, Hotels & Restaurants, Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals, and Others), and Regional Forecast, 2023-2030

The global commercial refrigeration equipment market size was valued at USD 50.42 billion in 2022. The market is projected to grow from USD 52.86 billion in 2023 to USD 77.73 billion by 2030, exhibiting a CAGR of 6.4% during the forecast period.

Commercial refrigeration equipment is used for various cooling and freezing operations. It comprises equipment such as a freezer, refrigerator, and ice-making machine. It has applications in diverse sectors such as food & beverages, retail stores, hotels & restaurants, chemicals & pharmaceuticals, and others. Another segment includes vending machines. These types of products are used for commercial restaurants, hotels, supermarkets, and quick service restaurants such as McDonald’s, KFC, and others.

The global market exhibited stable average growth due to the resuming retail sector operation and growing demand for carbonated drinks globally. Additionally, there is a growing demand for commercial refrigerators and freezers across supermarkets, hypermarkets, and food retailers for storing ready-to-eat products, processed foods, and frozen foods. Another major factor that drives the growth is rise in disposable income of end-users globally, resulting in high spending on frozen foods and ready-to-eat meals that subsequently drive the refrigeration equipment market growth. Furthermore, the growing traveling trend has boosted the demand for ready-to-eat meals, which will consecutively increase the sale of commercial refrigeration equipment over the forecast period.

• For instance, according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the number of international tourist arrivals increased from January 2022 to July 2022 by around 172% compared to the previous financial year, 2019.

COVID-19 IMPACT

Rising Need for Pharmaceutical Products to Boost Market Growth Amid the Pandemic 

The sudden emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the demand for commercial refrigeration in the first and second quarters of 2020 around the globe. This led to the enfolding of the retail chains network across the industry, creating complex challenges for the delivery of products to end-users. This resulted in the contraction of margins for the players manufacturing commercial refrigerators and freezers for various applications.

• For instance, despite COVID-19 In 2020, the net sales of the Middleby Corporation dropped by around 15.1% from fiscal year 2019 to fiscal year 2020. 

On the other hand, the demand to keep medicines and drugs from spoiling led to a surge in demand for commercial refrigerators and freezers. Further, post-pandemic demand for frozen food meals raised the demand for this equipment across developing and developed economies. Henceforth, this equipment became a primary need for medicinal storage across pharmaceutical companies and supply networks in the medical sector.

LATEST TRENDS 

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Leveraging Technological Advancement Trends and Smart AI integration to Drive Market Expansion

There has been a rise in demand for the Internet of Things and Big Data technologies across all verticals from the simplest mobile devices to smart manufacturing. Also, growing demand for the Internet of Things by manufacturers of commercial refrigerators is accelerating the market growth. In addition, key players shifted strategies to integrate machine learning and AI-based solutions. Thus, technological advancement for smart connectivity is setting a new trend for smart monitoring and energy-efficient equipment, which is consecutively growing the commercial refrigeration equipment market share across various sectors over the forecast period.

• For instance, in August 2020, Axiom Cloud, Inc acquired Turn Tide Technologies based in the U.S., which deals in commercial refrigeration systems, freezers, and AI based software. The acquisition was made to develop Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based software for controlling commercial refrigeration systems.

DRIVING FACTORS

Rising Investments in the Food and Beverage Industry to Drive Market Growth

The food and beverage refrigeration industry is one of the topmost sectors across all the regions, generating the highest annual revenue in the global GDP. The industry caters to customers from its raw farm commodities, which is over 2 million farms, into consumer food products through nearly 680,000 retail stores and food service outlets. This enhances the production and consumption rate of commercial refrigeration equipment sales globally. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the food processing industry has increased by 86% from April 2022-September 2022, with USD 410.62 million compared to the previous year 2021, for USD 220.42 million. Such investment in the food & beverages industry fuels the growth of the market globally.

RESTRAINING FACTORS

High Capital Expenditure and Maintenance Costs to Obstruct Adoption Across Industries

Commercial refrigeration systems are used in heavy load applications and as their usage is high, the norms they have to follow are stricter. Commercial refrigeration systems use commercial grade refrigerants, which are developed as per the government regulations to minimize carbon emission and greenhouse gas impact. Also, as this equipment is used in commercial applications, the price of the equipment varies from size and application as commercial refrigerators and freezers are built to fit in large spaces. Thus, buying costly refrigeration systems needs a high initial investment, and maintenance of such huge equipment becomes an obstruction to the adoption of systems across various industries. However, lack of awareness regarding energy-efficient systems and advanced refrigeration machines amongst customers is another major factor responsible for hampering the commercial refrigeration equipment market growth.

• For instance, the total installation cost required for the walk-in cooler is around USD 3,000- USD 9,000. Also, it requires additional maintenance costs of USD 100 to USD 325 for commercial refrigeration equipment such as refrigerators and freezers.

SEGMENTATION

 By Type Analysis

Refrigerator & Freezer Segment to Dominate the Type Segment with Growing Adoption

The market is segmented by type into refrigerator & freezer, transport refrigeration, refrigerated display cases, ice machines, and others.

The refrigerator & freezer segment is expected to experience exponential market growth owing to the increasing demand for cold storage equipment for numerous industrial applications. The equipment is used in the food service sector to store and provide customers with healthy and fresh food products.

Moreover, the transport refrigeration segment depicts liberal growth due to increasing export and import services through various transportation refrigeration channels such as road, water or air.

Furthermore, refrigerated display cases and ice machines segments are anticipated to experience moderate growth due to their moderate selling price and their applications.

The others segment comprises vending machines that represent steady growth due to stagnant demand as it has a longer shelf life with minimal applications across various sectors.

By Application Analysis

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Food & Beverage Segment to Dominate the Market with Ready-to-Eat Food Products

By application, the market is segmented into food & beverage, retail stores, hotels & restaurants, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, and others.

Food & beverage segment accounted for the highest market share due to the rising interest of customers toward healthy and ready-to-eat food products globally.

The chemical and pharmaceutical segment is expected to experience exponential growth due to the need for storing chemicals, pathology samples, and medicines diversifying commercial refrigeration applications.

Furthermore, retail stores in developed countries offer frozen food products and processed food to their consumers and henceforth expected to implicate gradual market growth.

Hotels & restaurants segment depicts a steady growth rate owing to an increase in consumers’ changing preferences for full and quick-service restaurants and their food services.

Moreover, the others segment will likely depict minimal growth due to limited global applications in the hospitality sector.

REGIONAL INSIGHTS

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The Asia Pacific market is expected to grow mostly due to increasing demand for frozen food products in India, China, South Korea, and Japan. Food manufacturing companies across the region are focusing on producing frozen versions of regional food products, thereby supporting market growth. 

According to the Organic Trade Association (OTA), the global organic food industry is expected to witness the highest growth in the food sector. Consumers are more inclined toward healthy and nutritional organically produced food products, resulting in higher dependence on the cold chain process and equipment. Also, the rising number of supermarkets and hypermarkets is expected to expand the Asia Pacific market share over the forecast period.

The rising urbanization in China and growth in potential income have led to shopping more and availing hygienic and organic produce in fresh condition. These refrigerators offer more freshness and hygiene, and high-quality food has raised the demand for commercial refrigeration systems in various industries. Wherein the availability of several local manufacturers for commercial applications is creating ample market opportunities for China in trading commercial refrigeration equipment globally.

Increasing investments in North America’s food & beverage industries will drive the regional market growth. Players are making strong investments in research & development and participating in strategic partnerships, acquisitions, and entering into collaborations and joint ventures, which are pivotal factors boosting the development potential of the North America market. Moreover, busy lifestyle and rising disposable income of the population make people spend more on ready-to-eat products and frozen foods, which subsequently increases the demand for commercial refrigerators and drives the market growth in North America.

• For instance, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 2021, 72% of Americans purchased ready-to-eat products and frozen foods due to their busy lifestyle.

The Europe market is set to witness significant growth owing to the presence of leading food & beverage manufacturing companies. The increasing count of quick service restaurants, fast food counters, and cold chain centers is considered to be the important factor that drives the market growth in Europe. Food & beverage producers invest in advanced refrigeration systems to keep food products fresh and frozen. Moreover, the implementation of stringent food safety regulations by the European governments is creating a huge demand for these devices to keep food products hazard free.

• For instance, in 2021, according to the Irish Food Board, there were 2,380 Subway counters, 900 KFC outlets, and 1,247 McDonald’s outlets in the U.K. Such rising number of stores is driving the demand for commercial refrigeration.

Additionally, the Middle East & Africa market is primarily driven by the increasing travel & tourism sector. Additionally, high infrastructure spending and standard of living in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and others will boost market expansion. Such developed and high-rise economies need innovative commercial refrigeration systems for keeping and storing frozen foods, meats, and ice creams, which will aid market growth in the Middle East and Africa. Moreover, increasing efforts by the South Africa government to reduce food waste will propel regional market growth over the forecast timeline.

• For instance, according to STR Inc., in the Middle East and Africa, the number of hotels increased by 2% from September 2021 to September 2022 and reached up to 243,613.

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Similarly, the Latin America market will witness stable growth owing to the increasing number of urban areas in Brazil and Mexico and their growing investments in premium food products such as bakery products.

KEY INDUSTRY PLAYERS

Technological Advances and New Product Strategies to Expand Market Potential

Key players in the market are raising potential by introducing innovative commercial refrigeration equipment. These capabilities enable consumers to save more with smart, efficient equipment and raise the trend of market development and customer needs. The key manufacturers have also launched advanced products to improve commercial refrigeration equipment sales across the globe and establish a leading position in the market.

• For instance, in August, 2022, Carrier launched an energy-efficient supra refrigeration unit, which offers precise temperature control for temperature-sensitive perishables and also gives high efficiency, lower fuel consumption, and reduced carbon emissions.

LIST OF KEY COMPANIES PROFILED:

• Emerson Electric Co. (U.S.)


• Carrier Corporation (U.S.)


• Danfoss (Denmark)


• GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft (Germany)


• DAIKIN EUROPE GROUP (Belgium)


• Johnson Controls (Ireland)


• Nor-Lake, Inc. (U.S.)


• Danfoss (Denmark)


• The Middleby Corporation (U.S.)


• Imbera (Mexico)


• Welbilt (U.S.)


• AB Electrolux (Sweden)


• Ali Group S.r.l. (Italy)


• AHT Cooling Systems GmbH (Austria)


• Hillphoenix, A Dover Company (U.S.)


• Excellence Industries (U.S.)


• Illinois Tool Works Inc. (U.S.)


• Lennox International Inc. (U.S.)


• Minus Forty Technologies Corp. (Canada)


• Panasonic Corporation (Japan)


• True Manufacturing Co., Inc. (U.S.)


• Whirlpool Corporation (U.S.)


• Standex International Corporation (U.S.)


• Viessmann (Germany)


• Canadian Curtis Refrigeration Inc. (Canada)


• Everidge, Inc. (U.S.)

KEY INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS:

• February 2023: Frigoblock, a leading transport refrigeration manufacturer and a brand of Thermo King, has tested and started deliveries of electric multi temperature vehicles that are energy-efficient and getting prime preference across the industry.


• September 2022: Ryder acquired San Francisco based start-up Baton to grow supply chain and transportation solution businesses. This acquisition helped to bring new technologies to the market.


• September 2022: Thermo King showcased its breakthrough advanced trailer refrigeration system with three new models, Spectrum, AxlePower, and Advancer-e.


• September 2022: Frigoblock introduced the new EK Whisper, an undermount split refrigeration system that delivers lower noise, high performance, and better serviceability through its compact design.


• January 2022: Carrier partnered with ConMet to deliver sustainable solutions to users, assisting companies by supporting their Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) goals.

REPORT COVERAGE

An Infographic Representation of Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Market

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The research report offers in-deep analysis of global market and factors affecting the equipment sales. These include opportunities, growth drivers, threats, key developments, and restraints. In addition, it further helps in analyzing, segmenting, and defining the market based on different segments such as type and application. Our research strategically analyzes several strategies such as product innovations, mergers, alliances, joint ventures, and acquisitions adopted by players in the market.

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