Twenty years of cold chain

South of Wuguan City, there is a field of farmland very close to the city. It should be the season for working, but at this time there is no one around, only dark ridges, no vegetables or crops.

In the planning of Wuguan City, this piece of land has been given a very important function.

It is intended to be used to build a "cold chain industrial park". In the county town to the east, west and south of Wuguan City, farmers grow a lot of onions, carrots, broccoli and so on.

Over the years, Wuguan City has been continuously promoting the integration of agriculture and markets, establishing multiple agricultural product bases and building connections between these bases and markets. However, problems still exist. In short, there is too much overlap. Taking just four bases and four market terminals as an example...

A single business transaction involves as many as sixteen transmission transactions; if we broaden our perspective...

It became even more chaotic and incoherent.

Therefore, a major function of this land is to act as an "intermediary," responsible for connecting upstream and downstream businesses and then redistributing them according to demand. This means a significant reduction in transportation costs, ideally by half, which is an important way for vegetable farmers to increase their income.

The reason it's called a "Cold Chain Industrial Park" rather than a "Cold Chain Logistics Park" reflects another consideration of Wuguan City. While Ganzhou's overall cold chain infrastructure lags behind, there are ways to introduce more advanced operational concepts, industry technologies, and even cold chain talent. Applying the mindset of an industrial park to agriculture is a feasible method for agricultural modernization and a major driving force for increasing the added value of agricultural products.

The sheer size of this land inspires countless imaginations; it can support a million-ton-level cold storage facility. Combined with its advantageous location, it could be considered a larger version of Tongxing. The demands it faces are strikingly similar to those of Tongxing around 05: sluggish wholesale markets at the production sites, much like the upstream base here.

Tongxing's role in coordinating operations is similar to the mission of this cold chain industrial park.

A large hotel in the city had a banner with a welcome message related to the "Ganzhou Cold Chain Forum," which was the place Hu Shutong and Liu Zhiying had agreed to meet.

But as soon as he reached the lobby on the first floor, Hu Shutong saw Liu Zhiying. "Why didn't you go upstairs?"

"Mr. Meng said he can handle it himself and told us to just wait for news."

Hu Shutong frowned slightly and slowly sat down. "Zhiying, this summit should be an action between companies regarding cold chain industrial parks, right?"

Liu Zhiying nodded and said, "Wuguan City has adopted a fully open attitude this time, treating cold chain enterprises outside of Ganzhou equally. As long as they can do practical things for Ganzhou's agriculture, they can become options for this industrial park."

"Let's not discuss the industry for now, let's talk about transportation. In other words, Wuguan City wants to build a cluster-type industrial park, integrating multiple enterprises to jointly support this large project, similar to the Panhu Foreign Transport Industrial Park."

"That's the logic from an operational perspective, but in my judgment, only a handful of companies will succeed this time. The reason is simple,"

The infrastructure of this industrial park was invested in by Wuguan City.

For businesses, as long as this investment is wiped out,

This is no ordinary light.

Hu Shutong tilted his gaze slightly upwards, "I suppose the cold chain companies in Wuguan City are feeling a bit of a crisis."

"That's right. As far as I know, more than a dozen companies outside of Ganzhou have registered their qualifications with Wuguan City, all wanting a piece of the pie. The strength of cold chain companies here is relatively even, and it's hard to name a real leader. So this time, they've called on some cold chain companies from other cities to discuss forming a group and gaining a voice in the entire industrial park."

Hu Shutong nodded and said, "Ganzhou enterprises will definitely occupy a place in this industrial park. It is impossible to hand over the entire operation to people from other provinces."

"That's what I think too. No matter how many advantages foreign companies have, they still lack the local connections. This forum should be planned to expand its reach further. Even if other companies come in, they will inevitably take the lead, because this market is too lucrative."

The term "fat piece of meat" is quite apt. From the perspective of cold chain companies, the biggest fear is cost estimation, especially for hardware. This situation is akin to "buying the building blocks and then having to pave the road." For some veterans in the industry, if this aspect isn't a concern, there are almost countless ways to make money.

Hu Shutong had seen that piece of land and couldn't help but project many thoughts onto Tongxing. "We two are just floating around, so why don't we go up and take a look?"

Hu Shutong said no more and stepped into the elevator, pressing the button for the top floor.

But the moment the elevator doors opened, what came into their view was Meng Qiangqiang sitting far away by the window.

The commotion in the nearby conference room made the silence here seem even more palpable, while the silent restlessness of one person made the silence suffocating. Meng Qiangqiang sat there with his head down, his fingers digging into his hair, scratching it a few times before suddenly stopping. Liu Zhiying instantly understood his stubbornness.

A moment later, Meng Qiang suddenly stood up, his hands frantically rubbing his pants, clenching them into fists. At that instant, a genuine smile appeared on his fiery face, and he once again walked towards the conference room.

"Are you never going to stop? How many times have I told you, you can't come in without an invitation!"

"Please, just consider it a scalped ticket. I can listen to the second half, okay?"

"If you don't leave, I'm calling security!"

"No, no! I brought everything I needed to. I work in the cold chain logistics industry too, why can't I get in!"

"Small workshops in the county aren't qualified!"

"What do you mean by 'workshop'! You don't know anything, let me in!"

With a series of rustling sounds, Meng Qiangqiang squatted down, picked up the things, hugged them tightly to his chest, and walked towards the window again. He pursed his lips deeply, blinked rapidly, tilted his head, sat back down, and snorted loudly.

"Hi!"

Looking up, and seeing Hu Shutong sitting right in front of her, she exclaimed, "What brings you here!"

A moment later, his eyes were brimming with tears, and he suddenly sniffled.

"Why are you so late?!"

……

I've loved cold chain logistics for twenty years.