COLD CHAIN
The three golden rules of successful cold chain supply The advantages to a streamlined and product quality journey created by the digitisation of the supply chain process can have an impact on food supply. Food & Beverage Industry News discovered.
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uddy Boots by TELUS Agriculture are specialists in helping customers produce safer and more sustainable food outcomes, through supply chain management solutions tailored to industry needs. As the food and beverage industry continues to become more digitised, companies like Muddy Boots by TELUS Agriculture have stepped up to provide cloud computing solutions for critical data points that help ensure quality management. A new cold chain smart label is one offering from Muddy Boots by TELUS Agriculture, which promises to create a new layer of digital quality management. The road from paddock to plate can be a long one, especially across Australia’s vast and temperate land. One in three food products are lost or wasted along the way each year, often because of breaks in the cold
chain. The greater the distance food travels, and the more times a product is transferred between suppliers, transporters, distributors, and retailers, the more likely it is that a break might occur in the cold chain, which can cause food to spoil and lead to recalls and loss of product. Cold chain conditions are set for foods relating to the maximum and minimum temperature requirements, and the length of time a food product can be allowed to remain unrefrigerated. Rotating stock to ensure that products are sold before reaching their expiry date is the final rule guiding cold chain supply at the point of sale. An uninterrupted cold chain gives a guarantee that food is safe to eat when it reaches the consumer, which then avoids the headaches that comes with breaks and product losses to manufacturers and producers.
Muddy Boots’ cold chain solutions are designed to simplify industry compliance. 36 Food&Beverage Industry News | April 2022 | www.foodmag.com.au
Never warmer than The ‘never warmer than’ rule governs the maximum temperature at which food should be transported, stored, and handled. Chilled foods might also have a keep above temperature to ensure that food is not damaged by being frozen. While food manufacturers and producers are responsible for setting any ‘never warmer than’ and ‘keep above’ temperatures, Australian Food and Grocery Council guidelines recommend that chilled foods are never warmer than 5°C and frozen foods never warmer than -18°C. The same guidelines recommend that chilled foods are kept above 0°C to prevent damage from ice crystal formation on the product, which can lead to spoiling. Temperatures must also be detailed in all documents accompanying the food and communicated from each link in the cold chain to the next.
A recent study Muddy Boots by TELUS Agriculture conducted within the food retail sector identified food safety concerns around high-risk products, which were running over temperature guidelines during transit. More than half of all trips were in breach of temperature guidelines, with 25 per cent of high temperature trips posing potential food safety risks.
Maximum out of refrigeration The maximum-out-of-refrigeration rule stipulates the length of time a food product can be outside a temperature-controlled environment without breaking the cold chain conditions. While time limits are set by producers and manufacturers, AFGC guidelines recommend chilled foods are not out of refrigeration for more than 20 minutes. Frozen foods being unloaded or dispatched in ambient or room
