SS Dunedin Refrigerated Shipment
The SS Dunedin refrigerated shipment was the 1882 voyage in which the sailing ship Dunedin, fitted with a Bell-Coleman refrigeration machine, carried frozen meat from Port Chalmers, New Zealand, to London and arrived with the cargo in good condition.
What happened and why it matters
The Dunedin voyage proved that frozen food could survive a months-long ocean passage, opening the global trade in perishables that reefer containers carry today. The ship left Port Chalmers on February 15, 1882, with about 5,000 carcasses of mutton, lamb, and pork plus butter and other goods, and reached London on May 24. Only one carcass had to be condemned, and the cargo was sold at London's Smithfield market. The success made frozen meat a mainstay of New Zealand's economy. Temperature control from origin to destination remains the core of cold chain shipping, from reefer containers to insulated parcels.
Related events
Sources
- First frozen meat shipment leaves New Zealand nzhistory.govt.nz
- Refrigeration and sheep farming teara.govt.nz
- Dunedin (1874 ship) en.wikipedia.org