Refrigerated cargo ships (reefers)
Dedicated refrigerated cargo ships — palletised fruit, meat, seafood. Substantially displaced by refrigerated containers but a specialist ~500-ship fleet remains active on premium routes (Latin-American bananas, Chilean + New Zealand fruit, Norwegian salmon).
Work environment
Small crew (20-30). Continuous refrigeration monitoring during voyage — Chief Officer + Chief Engineer share responsibility. Cargo damage claims disproportionately high vs container-carried reefers — precision is the differentiator.
Common ranks onboard
- master
- chief officer
- second officer
- third officer
- chief engineer
- second engineer
- third engineer
- electro technical officer
- bosun
- able seafarer deck
- ordinary seaman
- motorman
- ship cook
Typical certificates
- BST
- PSCRB
- AFF
- MFA
- Reefer cargo handling
Generate a tailored list with the STCW certificate checker.
Safety risks
- Refrigerated cargo hold enclosed-space entry (low O2)
- Ammonia refrigerant leak risk
- Cargo damage from single-hour refrigeration failure
Salary reference
/salaries/vessel/reefer
Related
Primary sources
High confidence
Last verified