Of all the mixed loads we build at PEIVANA, the frozen container is the one we recommend most often to first-time importers. A frozen food container from Egypt removes almost every complication that makes fresh produce logistics stressful: no ripening clock, no ethylene chemistry, no seasonal scramble, and — best of all — no temperature conflicts. Everything in the box travels at -18°C, so you can mix SKUs as freely as you would fill a supermarket freezer aisle.
One Set Point Changes Everything: -18°C
Fresh mixed containers demand careful temperature grouping — our winter citrus loads live at +5°C, mango needs +10–12°C, grapes want 0°C. Frozen cargo has none of this. Every IQF (Individually Quick Frozen) product — fruit, vegetables, herbs — ships at a single -18°C set point. That means:
- Mix any SKUs in any ratio. Two pallets of okra next to ten of strawberries next to three of molokhia — no compatibility check needed.
- No transit anxiety. A -18°C product does not ripen, soften or decay in a 25-day sailing the way fresh fruit can. Longer lanes — Southeast Asia, North America — open up without special planning.
- 12+ months of shelf life on arrival, so one container can feed your market for a full quarter.
- No seasonality at destination. Egyptian strawberries are picked in winter, but you can receive them in July.
What Goes in the Box: Egypt’s Core IQF Range
Egypt has become one of the world’s leading IQF origins, led by the famous winter strawberry crop. The heart of the range:
- IQF strawberries — Egypt’s flagship frozen export; whole, sliced or diced; the anchor of most frozen containers.
- Frozen okra — zero and extra-fine grades; a staple in Gulf and diaspora markets.
- Frozen molokhia — minced jew’s mallow, a product almost no other origin supplies at Egyptian quality.
- Frozen spinach — chopped or leaf, blocks or IQF.
- Frozen mixed vegetables — peas & carrots, mixed blends for retail and food service.
Sample 40ft Frozen Container Plan (24 Pallets / ~24 Tons)
A typical retail-and-foodservice split we quote for Gulf and European buyers:
| Product | Pallets | Packaging | Approx. Net Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| IQF strawberries (whole) | 10 | 4×2.5 kg bags or 10 kg cartons | ~10,000 kg |
| Frozen okra (zero grade) | 5 | 400 g retail bags in master cartons | ~5,000 kg |
| Frozen molokhia (minced) | 4 | 400 g bags / 10 kg blocks | ~4,000 kg |
| Frozen spinach | 2 | 400 g bags / blocks | ~2,000 kg |
| Frozen mixed vegetables | 3 | 1 kg / 2.5 kg bags | ~3,000 kg |
| Total | 24 | Retail or catering pack | ~24,000 kg |
Every line in this table can be resized, swapped or private-labelled. Want 18 pallets of strawberries and a token pallet each of the vegetables to test your market? That is exactly the kind of order our mixed container program was built for.
Year-Round Supply, Planned Around Two Packing Peaks
IQF production follows the fresh harvest — strawberries are frozen December to March, okra and molokhia mainly in summer — but cold stores turn this into year-round availability. In practice:
| Period | What Is Being Frozen | What Ships from Cold Store |
|---|---|---|
| Dec–Mar | Strawberries (peak), spinach, peas | Everything — freshest strawberry stock of the year |
| Apr–May | Mango prep, artichoke, green beans | Full range from storage |
| Jun–Sep | Okra, molokhia, mango | Full range; new-crop okra/molokhia |
| Oct–Nov | Transition; early winter vegetables | Full range from storage |
The practical tip: book strawberry-heavy programs against the winter pack. Buyers who contract volumes in Q4–Q1 lock the best fruit and the steadiest pricing for the whole year.
Certified Plants, Export-Grade Compliance
Egyptian IQF exports run through modern freezing plants operating BRCGS, ISO 22000 and HACCP systems, with metal detection, lab testing and full lot traceability from farm to carton. Documentation — health certificates, certificates of origin, halal where required — is standard with every load. PEIVANA works with audited partner plants and matches the certificate package to your market’s requirements, whether that is the GCC, the EU or North America.
Who the Frozen Container Is For
- Ethnic and mainstream retailers stocking okra, molokhia and spinach for Middle Eastern, African and Asian communities.
- Food service distributors supplying restaurants, hotels and caterers with fruit and vegetable staples.
- Industrial users — juice, jam, bakery and dairy processors buying IQF strawberry as raw material.
- First-time importers of Egyptian produce who want a low-risk introduction before graduating to fresh programs.
FAQ: Frozen Food Containers from Egypt
Can I mix retail packs and catering packs in one frozen container?
Yes. Because everything travels at -18°C, mixing 400 g retail bags with 10 kg food-service cartons is purely a palletisation exercise. Many customers run exactly this split — retail bags for supermarkets, bulk cartons for their catering clients.
What is the minimum order for a mixed frozen load?
A full 40ft reefer (roughly 24 tons) is the standard unit, and inside it we can go down to a single pallet per SKU. For smaller trials, ask us about groupage options on major lanes.
How long does a frozen container take to prepare?
For in-stock items, loading typically happens within 7–14 days of order confirmation, plus sailing time from Alexandria, Damietta or Sokhna. Private-label packaging adds lead time for printing, so flag it early and we will build it into the schedule.
Start with the Easiest Container in the Business
Send us your SKU wishlist and destination port — we will return a full -18°C load plan and a same-day quotation. Contact PEIVANA or message us on WhatsApp now.