The reefer revolution

Driving along the quays at the port of Antwerp today, you’ll see row upon row of containers. Steel, perfectly arranged, and colourful. Were you aware that each white container functions as a large fridge? Pierre Seynaeve served for many years as a director at International Container Transport Coordination (ICTC). The company played an important role in the success of those refrigerated containers.

Harbour stories

How Pierre travelled the world to keep fruit fresh

In the early 1980s, Pierre joined ICTC, which is today Thornton THICO Group. A company mainly focused on repairing (refrigerated) containers. He had a legal background, but was soon put to work elsewhere. "They asked me to go to Africa and establish a network there," Pierre recalls. So he did. For months, sometimes six weeks at a time, he travelled through East and West Africa. What began as a commercial assignment grew into a banana plantation under our own management.

The banana problem

In the 1980s, fruit from Africa was mainly transported on old reefer ships, where the entire hold functioned as a large fridge. Bananas, pineapples, mangoes: they travelled a long way, often at high cost and with considerable loss.

“Transport was expensive and inefficient,” explains Pierre. "A single rotten banana in the load would cause all the fruit to be rotten by the time it arrived in Europe."

foto's uit de oude doos van seanior Pierre Seynaeve - Société Bananière de Motobé > alleen te gebruiken in het kader van The Seaniors 2026

Can't we just buy a plantation?

Pierre Seynaeve,former employee of ICTC

Within ICTC, there was a firm belief that refrigerated containers, as separate and precisely managed units, offered a safer and more economical way to transport fruit. "One rotten piece can no longer contaminate the entire load, and you can monitor the temperature of each container perfectly throughout the entire journey."

But convincing the sector proved difficult. Some established players benefited from the old system and blocked direct contact with growers in Africa. Until Pierre asked a bold question that would change everything: "Can't we just buy a plantation?"

If you become a plantation owner yourself

What almost sounded like a joke became reality. ICTC and its partners purchased a banana plantation of around 300 hectares in West Africa. Suddenly, ICTC was no longer just a logistics service provider, but also a producer. "As a plantation owner yourself, they have no choice but to talk to you," says Pierre with a smile.

The plantation was rebuilt from scratch, following modern principles. Old roads disappeared, replaced by cableways that transported the bananas to the factory. “From plantation to ship, everything was part of a single chain,” says Pierre.

The bananas went directly from the factory in refrigerated containers, which were then loaded onto ships at the port. Less throughput, less loss, less waste.

Prove it by doing it

Resistance remained fierce. Reefer ships, air freight, and entrenched players: no one was keen on containers. Instead of words, ICTC let its actions speak. Pierre gave demonstrations on beaches, opened containers, and invited producers and shipping companies to see for themselves how it worked. "You have to make it tangible," he says. "People don't believe until they see it with their own eyes."

Slowly but surely, things began to turn. Other plantations followed. Avocados that used to be flown in were now transported by ship. Not only cheaper, but also more sustainable. Today, the reefer is indispensable in the transport of fruit and vegetables.

A single banana in the store tells a story of technological progress, boldness, and collaboration.

Pierre Seynaeve,former employee of ICTC

The world comes together in the port

For Pierre, that may well be the heart of his career: the port as a crossroads of stories. "What happens here in Antwerp is connected to what grows in Africa, America, or Asia." A single banana in the store tells a story of technological progress, boldness, and collaboration.

After more than forty years, Pierre retired as a director. But looking back, he does so with visible pride. Not just in the containers, depots, or figures, but also in the pioneering work, initiatives, and stories that came before.