FEATURE
INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
Products are cooled to the optimum temperature as soon
as possible after production.
maintains product quality and improves
food safety by suppressing the growth of
potentially harmful bacteria,” says Lizelle
van der Berg, director of the Global Cold
Chain Alliance (GCCA) South Africa.
“A great deal of research has been
conducted over the years to establish
what is the optimal temperature and
storage conditions for nearly all products.
The GCCA has excellent resources for its
members that contains information on
over 400 different commodities,” says
Van der Berg.
“The use of best practices for storage
and handling is the first step to ensure
that products are kept on temperature.
It can be as simple as knowing what the
temperature/RH should be set at and
maintain that. Of course, it is much more
complicated than that once product
starts to move in the cold supply chain.
“Technology can be great tool to
help maintain proper temperature/
RH. We find that making an educated
decision about what is the best product
suited for a member’s business need is
key to growing a business in the cold
chain. Selecting the most effective
technology combined with updating
employees on best practices is a recipe
for success in maintaining the cold
chain, regardless of what country you
are in,” Van der Berg says.
COLD LINK AFRICA •
OCTOBER 2019
The best bet for reducing fluctuation
in the cold chain is to have each link
understand their role and use the best
practices for maintaining the cold chain,
Van der Berg says.
“Although technology is important,
it has been shown time and time again
that human error is typically what leads to
temperature abuse: leaving doors open
in a facility or truck, not storing products
in the proper temperature zone to begin
with, storing hot product with cold, and
leaving product sitting outside of a
refrigerated space for too long by getting
distracted by another task,” she says.
Jan Lievens, senior consultant on
applied postharvest technologies,
UTE South Africa, agrees that the
human factor is extremely important in
maintaining the integrity of the cold chain.
“Of course, refrigeration plays an
important role in the process, but all
too often the damage is caused by a
lack of attention during the postharvest
process. Both the farmer and importer or
exporter have a responsibility to do it right
every time. All the buyer is looking for, or
rather should be looking for, is a quality
product,” he says.
“The time of harvest, the process
and timing until the produce gets under
precooling, the humidity, the removal
of airborne and ethylene control, the
Here is an example of how the cold
chain should flow for temperature
management:
• Products are cooled down to the
optimum temperature as soon
as possible after production and
then monitored during handling,
storage and transport.
• In both storage areas and vehicles
there must be sufficient airflow and
circulation of air to ensure that the
cold air coming off the coolers is
distributed right through the area
to ensure consistent temperature
all over, prevent ‘hot spots’ and
remove any warm air from the
chamber or area.
• Packaging plays a role to
maintain the temperature of the
products for as long as possible
while the product is not under
cooling, and similarly the type of
vehicle plays a role – the vehicle
should always be fully enclosed
and preferably insulated. If
it is transported for a period
exceeding a specified time, say
one hour, the vehicle should also
be refrigerated, in other words,
the produce is transported at the
optimum temperature.
•
•
•
•
Handling areas should also be
cooled down to assist in the
process, depending on the type of
product.
Product should be loaded at
properly enclosed docking bays
with seals that prevent airflow from
the outside of the building into the
handling area.
Temperatures are monitored and
recorded along The Cold Chain
– this is either done manually or
through the use of electronic
temperature loggers that are either
placed in the packaging (and
connected with the item) or in the
handling area, the storage area
and the load area of the vehicle
transporting the goods. Recording
from the loggers are downloaded at
the end of a trip and or monitored
with alarms in place to determine
that no uncontrolled fluctuations
occur along the way or over time.
Properly managed processing
areas and storage areas for
perishables being exported from
South Africa are registered by
the Perishable Produce Export
Certification Agency (PPECB) and
regularly audited.
www.coldlinkafrica.co.za
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