CONTRIBUTORS
INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
Cold storage infrastructure and refrigeration tech are key for growth in SA food production By Dawie Kriel , head of business development at EP Refrigeration – a division of Energy Partners and part of the PSG group of companies
South Africa ’ s food production and export industries are experiencing encouraging growth injections from the increase in demand for high value and diversified produce such as blueberries , macadamia nuts and citrus .
The export demand in the blueberry industry alone is expected to grow by at least 44 000 tonnes by 2024 . A critical enabling factor to support this growth is a combination of investing in the latest refrigeration technology and improving the capacity and reliability of cold storage infrastructure .
The increase in exotic fruit exports will require businesses to think differently about how they invest in technology . Berry products fetch a higher price per kilogram than most other agricultural exports from South Africa , and we will see that more companies are going to spend capital on high-tech facilities to account for their sensitivity to temperature changes .
On the export of citrus , several factors have made for a growing export industry . The trend in product development like new variants that are easier to peel and seedless ( making them more popular ) is continuing , and of course the higher demand for products containing vitamin C - which is being driven by the ongoing health awareness resulting from the pandemic . Keeping in mind that South Africa is currently the world ’ s second largest exporter of citrus - and we are still expanding with new orchard plantings – we can expect citrus to be another bigger driver of cold storage development .
The macadamia nut production industry , with annual production outputs expected to reach around 60 000 tonnes by the end of this year , is another example of an industry that also requires significant refrigeration infrastructure . The need for high-tech solutions in this space is vital to improve quality and reduce energy costs and will definitely grow over the next seven years as the new trees come into production .
With these developments in mind and the added regulatory cold sterilisation requirements that form part of global food safety and logistics standards , the refrigeration industry is likely to see a notable increase in activity and complexity as the country ’ s food production industry shifts and evolves over the coming years . Investing in refrigeration infrastructure that is highly energy efficient , delivers on sustainability , reporting requirements , improves reliability and ultimately reduces cost will be imperative . The country ’ s infrastructure problems will only make for more severe challenges for refrigeration-reliant companies . The combination of on-going loadshedding , bottlenecks at our ports and the decaying road infrastructure requires cold storage and transport infrastructure to hold products for longer durations of time before shipping can take place . More sustainable cold storage and insulation as well as proper servicing of refrigeration equipment is going to become paramount . With increased power cuts , a higher number of maintenance issues are going to be inevitable , which is why having a well-thought-out service plan for one ’ s refrigeration systems will
© Cold Link Africa | Benjamin Brits
The use of high-tech equipment and solutions will become paramount to the entire refrigeration sector in South Africa with exponential growth expected over coming years in multiple sectors .
become more and more important to avoid unplanned downtime .
The cost of energy in South Africa is also set to increase at above-inflation rates for quite a few years to come . Therefore , investing in those high-tech cooling solutions that are less energy-intensive will help companies to contain their costs at competitive levels . There is definitely a business case to be made for pairing one ’ s refrigeration system with a renewable energy solution like solar power as well .
While opportunities for the food production industry will certainly grow exponentially , businesses will need to make the right moves to ensure that they are ready . Thinking out of the box to make use of innovative products like servitisation models ( Cooling as a Service ) and partnering with an experienced and reliable service provider in the refrigeration industry for design , build and servicing should be every company ’ s first point of call . CLA
34 www . coldlinkafrica . co . za COLD LINK AFRICA • September 2022