Rafael Llerena senior, a prominent player in the reefer shipping sector over the past six decades and known to many in the international fresh produce trade, passed away last weekend, it has been confirmed.
The father of Rafael Llerena, chief executive of Spanish perishables logistics specialist Easyfresh, Llerena senior was active in the Mediterranean fruit sector for many years, notbaly helping to expand the trade in citrus from Spain to other parts of Europe.
During the course of his lengthy career, Llerena senior founded a number of companies including Compa~ia Maritima Lamed and Medimar, and sat on the board of several others.
'He was well known for his honesty, loyalty, reliability and professionality,' a spokesperson for Valencia-based Easyfresh told Eurofruit.
Back in the late 1950s, Llerena began working at reefer ship owner Cofruna and thereafter transferred to Trafume, which operated in the same commercial arena.
He subsequently moved to London, where he was active in developing the Spanish citrus import business into the UK and Europe's north-west mainland.
Years later he returned to Spain, where he took on the chairmanship of SGB until the creation of Lamed, formerly J Lauritzen (Spain) and a member of the Manreefer Group.
