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Cold storage vacancy hits record as absorption turns negative in 2026
Nationwide cold storage net negative absorption totaled 56 million cubic feet in the first half of 2026, pushing vacancy to 7.7% while food-related demand cooled.
Cold storage facilities are seeing a sharp demand slowdown, with negative net absorption in the first half of 2026 reaching a record high vacancy level, according to a report cited by Bisnow. Nationwide, cold storage logged net negative absorption of 56 million cubic feet, the first time absorption has fallen into negative territory for the property type since 2007. Bisnow also reports that 41 million cubic feet of new supply came online, helping lift the overall vacancy rate to 7.7%, up from the 20-year record high at the end of 2025. The report points to weaker grocery shopping as a driver of softer cold storage demand. Bisnow says food prices are up more than 30% versus 2019, while a cut in SNAP benefits and high gas prices contributed to a 1.8% year-over-year decline in grocery unit sales. Newmark data, as summarized by Bisnow, also highlights uneven impact across building ages: warehouses built before 2006 account for 68% of all vacant cold storage space and have an 8.2% vacancy rate, while facilities built between 2006 and 2019 are 3.4% vacant. Bisnow adds that cold storage built since 2020 has absorbed most of the new demand, and that colder facilities cost $130 to $350 per square foot to build versus $80 to $150 per square foot for regular warehouses, according to the report.