SAVANNAH, Ga. – The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) announced on Tuesday that it will offer a new Option for chilled cargo inspections starting July 1, 2026, when operations begin at U.S. Customs’ 4,000 square-foot refrigerated space at the Port of Savannah.
“Our on-terminal Customs station supports the expedited handling of perishable cargo,” said GPA President and CEO Griff Lynch. “We know it’s important for shippers to get these commodities onto store shelves as quickly as possible while maintaining food safety.”
GPA said that refrigerated cargo inspections will be “performed in a temperature-controlled environment, without breaking the cold chain,” according to a press release issued on Tuesday.
Port officials said the facility has specialized infrastructure to ensure temperature controls, cleanliness, ventilation and freshness throughout the clearance and inspection process. There are 20 refrigerated power plug-ins on the exterior walls for refrigerated containers on chassis.
Georgia Ports added that the inspections are aimed in part at protecting domestic agriculture from invasive pests or plant diseases. The temperature-controlled section of the facility offers produce importers a new option to have chilled cargo inspected on-port, and will complement the numerous off-dock, nearby refrigerated warehouses. A dozen Savannah-area businesses operate nearly 2.4 million square feet of refrigerated warehousing, including 1.64 million square feet for frozen cargo and over 752,000 square feet of chilled space.
The Port of Savannah’s new inspection site supports one of the fastest-growing sectors for GPA. Chilled cargo imports are up 10.5 percent for the fiscal year to date (July 1, 2025-May 31, 2026) to 43,540 twenty-foot equivalent container units.
The refrigerated space is part of a $49.25 million project that moved U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations from their previous 130,000 square-foot location on Garden City Terminal to an adjacent 300,000 square-foot building, also on terminal.
The location accommodates federal inspections, not only by Customs, but also other agencies such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In addition to the warehouse, the new space for CBP includes 400,000 square feet of parking for outdoor inspections.
Bruce Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has lived in three states including Arkansas, Missouri and Georgia. During his nearly 20-year career, Bruce has served as managing editor and sports editor for numerous publications. He and his wife, Dana, who is also a journalist, are based in Carrollton, Georgia.
