Lineage — a cold storage firm with more than 480 warehouses including one in Spreckels Park — is the hottest thing on Wall Street.

Last week, the firm wrapped up the year’s biggest initial public offering of $4.4 billion.

It gave the world’s largest cold storage firm owned by Bay Group based in San Francisco an overall valuation of $18 billion.

Underscoring the demand for Lineage’s services, the cold storage and distribution center at 730 Spreckels Avenue is responsible for the bulk of the truck traffic going to and from Manteca’s Spreckels Business Park.

Lineage was formed 12 years ago in Colton in Southern California.

Today, the integrated warehousing and supply chain logistics concern serves North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.

The company has 26,000 employees worldwide.

Its United States revenue in 2023 was $5.3 billion while its net profit on its US operations was $96 million.

Its overall storage capacity exceeds 3 billion cubic feet.

The firm’s growth was powered in part by the pandemic as well as the shift to more people eating at home to save money due to rising prices.

Lineage is headquartered in Novi, Michigan, with additional offices around the world. It operates about 223 facilities in North America, including in 37 U.S. states, and warehouses in Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam.

A cold storage warehouse is a specialized storage facility equipped with temperature-controlled environments. Its primary function is to store temperature-sensitive products, often perishable goods like fresh produce, frozen foods, pharmaceutical products, and more, ensuring their quality and extending their shelf life. 

Cold storage warehouses fall into two categories based on their maintained temperatures: refrigerated and frozen. 

Refrigerated warehouses, also known as chill stores, typically maintain temperatures between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius and prevent cold loss. 

They’re commonly used for storing fresh produce, dairy products, and other perishable items that require a cool but not frozen environment.

On the other hand, frozen warehouses operate in sub-zero temperatures, commonly between -18 to -25 degrees Celsius. These facilities are designed to store frozen foods, such as meats, seafood, and frozen desserts, that must be kept at low temperatures to prevent bacterial growth and maintain product integrity.