291,000-square foot cold storage facility opens in Rincon, impacting ports and inland distribution

by Joe Hennessy

RINCON, Ga. (WTOC) - Representatives from Rincon, Georgia, to Italy were at Wednesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony for the MEDLOG cold storage facility.

The 291,000-square-foot facility on Heritage Way will transfer goods along the I-95 corridor and through the Georgia Ports.

“The Georgia Ports Authority is investing $4.2 billion so that we can support growth like this. We thank you for your trust and your confidence,” said Georgia Ports Authority President and CEO Griff Lynch. “We will not let you down.”

The facility has 42 loading docks, 20,000 pallet positions to store goods, and can process up to three million pounds of protein blast freezing per day.

MEDLOG leadership on Wednesday said it will generate an economic impact of $65 million for the state of Georgia.

“Dubbed the ‘Crown Jewel of the Cold Storage Industry,’ the new facility spans more than 27,871 m²,” MEDLOG wrote in a press release. “The facility boasts the largest blast freezing capacity in the U.S. at three million pounds of raw protein for rapid freezing and export per 24-hour period, making it three times as efficient as the 72-hour industry standard.”

Wednesday’s speakers included:

Giuseppe Prudente, Chairman of MEDLOG
Jose Carlos Garcia Gonzalez, MEDLOG Warehousing & Distribution Manager
A representative of Kevin Exley, the City of Rincon Mayor, spoke
Bill Hitchens, Georgia State Representative
Billy Hickman, Georgia State Senator
Jon Burns, Georgia Speaker of the House of Representatives
Sang H. Yi, USDOT Representative - Acting MARAD Administrator

Prudente said, “It’s really astonishing, it’s really incredible, it’s really emotional.”

Burns talked about the impact it’ll have, but that this process starts with the people of the region, Effingham County, and Rincon, who showed MEDLOG to invest here.

“There’s a work ethic here that’s evident when you come to locate here,” he said. “That’s why you locate here, not just because of the [location] but we’ve done in the past - we’re a proven commodity and thank you for recognizing that.”

Yi credited President Donald Trump and Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for their policies and decisions from Washington, D.C., trickling down to Rincon on Wednesday morning.

“We’re building again in America,” he said.

The facility is also rail-served, with a direct railcar access for transport inland and to the ports.

“We are not stopping here,” said Garcia Gonzalez. “We will continue to build, grow, and invest across North America and globally.”

This facility will offer 100 jobs.

“People keep wondering why everyone wants to move to Georgia - jobs, jobs,” said Sen. Hickman.