Why Is The Cold Chain Important?

How is the cold chain process different from your typical supply chain? The cold chain is a variation of the standard supply chain. It involves taking a refrigerated or frozen product from a temperature of 2 degrees Celsius (35 degrees Fahrenheit) all the way down to a temperature of 70 degrees Celsius (158 degrees Fahrenheit). The cold chain involves the food and beverage, pharmaceutical, and chemical industries.

What is the cold chain process?

The cold chain process is a logistics management process for perishable products that require refrigerated temperatures to maintain end-to-end quality and safety. It involves performing a series of tasks to prepare, store and transport products in the cold supply chain.

Logistics planning and management protects the integrity of cold chain transportation. It involves the use of proper packaging, appropriate transportation equipment, carefully selected transportation routes, perfect timing and visibility throughout to ensure that what is expected is what happens. The cold chain process is best accomplished through the use of technology and data at every point in the process.

Why is the cold chain important?

The cold chain ensures that perishable products are safe, high quality or potent at the time of consumption or use. Failure to maintain these products at the correct temperature can lead to degradation, discoloration, bruising or microbial growth. When you have quality cold chain products, you get satisfied customers, which means greater demand, and protection of public health.

In addition, cold chain suppliers make a significant contribution to the economy and workforce. According to the GCCA, the refrigerated warehousing industry generates approximately $6.1 billion in revenue annually. Not to mention, the North American refrigerated warehousing industry employs more than 62,774 full-time workers each year, 92 percent of whom are regular employees rather than contract or temporary employees.

What are the key elements of the cold chain?

Storage

The cold chain begins with the storage of products in refrigerated facilities. If manufacturers of cold chain products do not have the storage equipment needed to maintain oversight of their products, they will have to outsource their cold chain operations to partners who can provide the proper equipment.

Common cold storage equipment and facilities include refrigerated containers, cold rooms, chillers, freezers, flash freezers, and vaccine carriers.

Insulated Bulkhead

Packing

Temperature-controlled products require proper packaging to maintain their quality. Proper packaging helps reduce the risk of product contamination and ensures energy-efficient storage in the cold chain.

The most common refrigerants used in packaging are dry ice, gel packs, gel bricks, phase change materials (PCM) and EPS panels (expanded polystyrene or polystyrene foam).

Monitoring

It is necessary to track certain information about a specific cold chain product. This includes temperature and other environmental parameters, such as humidity levels. Without monitoring, sub-optimal conditions can occur and compromise product quality.

Cold chain monitoring typically refers to the use of Internet of Things (IoT) or other sensor software. These monitoring systems can detect temperature issues, track all cold chain products on one platform, and improve predictive maintenance by integrating sensor data with supply chain management software such as a transportation management system (TMS).

Deliveries

Cold chain management also involves the delivery of goods. Delivery is based on the end-user consumer's preferred method of receiving cold deliveries.