Farmers, agro-processors and transport businesses are highly dependent on the cold chain to ensure that products and services are delivered. The knock-on effect of bad cold chain management affects the retail industry, formal supermarket chains, street vendors and spaza shops.
It’s estimated that of the 10 million tons of food that go to waste every year, 45% is lost from the processing, packaging, and distribution stages. South Africa alone is responsible for the bulk of Africa’s cold storage capacity, yet many factors impact the industry beyond storage requirements.
What is the Cold Chain?
The cold chain is a specific part of the supply chain that deals with the movement and distribution of temperature-sensitive products. These include perishable foods such as fruits and vegetables, meat, dairy products and other foodstuffs that require low temperatures to prevent the growth of harmful micro-organisms.
The industry consists of components such as temperature monitoring, packaging considerations, specialised shipping and unique storage.
In South Africa, the following laws govern cold chain regulations:
- Foodstuffs, Cosmetics, and Disinfectants Act (Act 54 of 1972)
- Foodstuffs, Cosmetics, and Disinfectants Regulations (R962 of 1972)
- Department of Health Guidelines
- Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP)
- South African Bureau of Standards (SABS)
- Pharmaceutical Products Act (Act 53 of 1974)
The Department of Health (DoH) and the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development (DALRRD) are the responsible government bodies.
Further regulations are contained in the R638 (Regulations governing general hygiene requirements for food premises, the transport of food, and related matters). These indicate how certain food categories below should be stored and, transported. It demands that the food category, type of food product and the required core temperature be listed clearly.
Since different food cold chain products have different temperature requirements, cold chain logistics can provide you with temperature-controlled facilities like warehouses and transportation that can cater to different temperature needs.
Key Factors in Cold Chain Management
When managing your supply chain for perishable items, there are set requirements to storing the different products. Standard temperature settings are as follows:
Deep freeze meat and seafood: -30° C and -18° C
Ice cream, sorbet, and frozen seafood: -18°C to 0° C
Frozen meat: Between -12° C and 0° C
Raw unpreserved fish, molluscs, crustaceans, edible offal, poultry and meat: ≤ +4°C
Pharmaceutical drugs etc.: Between 2° C and 8° C
Chill fruits, veggies, and dairy products: 5° C or lower
Ambient fresh produce: 14° C and 24° C
Determining the Right Temperature
A few factors need to be considered when calculating the correct temperatures. These are:
- Duration of transit
- The size of the packaged shipment
- The weather/outside temperature
After the right method has been chosen, the following modern cold chain solutions can be applied.
Why is Cold Chain Management Important?
Through effective cold chain management, businesses can optimise operational efficiency, reduce costs, and mitigate risks associated with environmental disruptions. Further positive impacts include:
1. Sustainability
An increase in regulations surrounding carbon emissions is affecting the cold chain industry. It is therefore vital to exercise operational efficiency through correct and proper temperature control, using energy-efficient practices and optimised delivery routes that minimise companies’ carbon footprint.
2. Food Waste
Improved cold chain management aids in the reduction of food wastage. This can be achieved through improved temperature monitoring.
3. Product Efficacy
With products such as pharmaceuticals, the efficacy of the product is significantly reduced when it isn’t stored correctly. With effective cold chain management, this can prevented. With products such as ice cream, the integrity of the product is also maintained.
Common Cold Chain Concerns
Running a business in the cold chain isn’t without its challenges. Many problems can arise that affect the temperature of storage, be it in pack houses, refrigerators or refrigerated trucks. Here are three common issues:
Bad airflow: Uniform temperature in freezers, trucks, and trailers, and distributes air evenly within, but bad airflow causes humidity and varied temperatures within the unit.
Hot spots: These usually occur within a shipment if it doesn’t have a consistent temperature throughout the unit. Sections that are warmer than others are then created.
Top-freezing: How produce and products are arranged in storage or transport also affects how effectively they are preserved. When products are too close to refrigerated air, they can acquire frost damage.
Other challenges that the cold chain experiences are:
- Electricity supply
- Container availability for exports
- Safety concerns about CO2 or ammonia in refrigeration units
- Lack of visibility (cannot see if packaged goods are being damaged)
- Understaffed workforce
- Temperature sensitivity
Using proper cold chain management, your business is able to store, transport or deliver products safely to retailers and customers. South African laws that regulate this industry help businesses such as farmers, agro-processors and cold chain logistics remain compliant and keep consumers safe.
