New IBC totes delivered in California
California has more of almost every tote-filling industry than any other state. In 2025 it counted 166,660 food manufacturing jobs, 75,499 in chemicals, 63,604 in beverages, 42,575 in pharmaceuticals, 27,518 in fruit and vegetable preserving and 18,374 in dairy, the most of any state in four of the six (BLS QCEW 2025; BLS QCEW 2025; BLS QCEW 2025). Beverages are 1.7 times the national share of jobs here, the most concentrated of the state's container-using industries.
The industries sit in distinct places. Produce and dairy processing runs down the Central Valley: Stanislaus (3,669 fruit and vegetable jobs), Fresno (3,355) and Tulare, with 2,916 dairy jobs. Pharmaceutical work clusters in Los Angeles (8,300) and San Diego (8,028) counties. Warehousing is heaviest in the Inland Empire, where San Bernardino (67,058) and Riverside (51,310) are the two largest warehousing counties in the US.
Delivery to California
The state is long, so the ZIP decides the freight more than anywhere. A load to an Inland Empire or Stockton warehouse (San Joaquin County, 28,518 warehousing jobs) on I-10, I-15 or I-5 is a short run from the distribution hubs; a winery in the North Coast or a farm in the Imperial Valley is not. Wineries, dairies and ranches often have no dock, so say what equipment is on site.
What California buyers usually ask for
Wineries and juice plants often want stainless they can clean and reuse; others want composite totes that go one way to a customer. Say which. Chemical and pharmaceutical buyers should send the safety data sheet, since the density, packing group and flash point fix the rating or rule out plastic. Inland Empire receivers usually need an appointment; give the dock hours and any reference number the warehouse asks carriers to quote.
- Food-grade new IBC totesFor Central Valley juice, tomato, dairy and ingredient plants.Bottle resin: 21 CFR 177.1520 · Prior contents: None · Gaskets: EPDM or Viton · Sizes: 275, 330 gal
- Stainless steel IBC totesFor wineries, distilleries and brewers, and for spirits that a plastic tote must not hold.Steel: 304, 10 gauge · Finish: 2B · UN code: 31A · Sizes: 350, 550, 793 gal
- UN-rated chemical totesFor chemical and pharmaceutical shippers in Los Angeles and the Bay Area.UN code: 31HA1/Y · Packing groups: II and III · Specific gravity: 1.6 or 1.9 · Retest: every 2.5 years
- New totes for water storageFor ranches and rural homes storing water.Sizes: 275 and 330 gal · Bottle: new, food-contact on request · Full weight: about 2,400 lb (275) · Footprint: 48 x 40 in
Not sure which tote? Start from the product. A regulated liquid needs a UN-rated tote marked for its specific gravity.
Anything people eat or drink needs a food-contact bottle; a Class I flammable needs a steel IBC.
Quote totes delivered in California
Give the delivery ZIP in California, the product you will fill, how many totes and how often, and whether the site has a dock or needs a liftgate. If your plant books receiving slots, name the window and any site rules for drivers.