A Practical Guide to Cold Chain

Management for Food Safety &

Quality
From Factory to Consumer

Applicable for Chilled Products

Only
Definition
Overview
Significance
Challenges
Legislative Directives

INTRODUCTION
 Cold Chain- Significance
• Good Temperature Control will reduce loss in
food quality, prevent the breach on food
safety and reduce the food waste.
• Refrigeration does not kill pathogens or
microbes but reduce the occurrence of
microbial contamination.
• Good cold chain management will ensure
consumers satisfaction.
 Definition- Chilling Process
• To reduce food temperature below ambient but
above -1˚C.
• Agreement on the International Carriage of
Perishable Foodstuffs (ATP Agreement)
highlighted that chilling temperature for Butter is
at 6˚C and 4˚C for Milk & Dairy Products.
• Chilling is the preventative step of microbial
contamination, however, facilities operation such
as pneumatic system might be able to
contaminate the process environment.
 Cold Chain Overview
• Refer to Supplementary Data (Attachment).
 Cold Chain Challenges- Factory
• Inadequate cooling facilities.
• Inadequate good hygiene practices in
production facilities.
• Inadequate monitoring programmes for good
temperature control within the facilities.
• Ineffective cold chain conditions and handling.
• Lack of trained personnel in cold chain
management.
 Cold Chain Challenges- Storage &
Distribution
• Lack of knowledge on Food Safety, Quality and Defense.
• Lack of dedicated personnel to monitor temperature and
time.
• Abuse of temperature during transfer points.
• Food spoilage can develop at very low temperature due to
heat stress.
• Lack of humidity monitoring as increase in humidity may lead
to fat bloom & off flavours.
• For chilled foods are being unloaded/dispatched in room
temperature or +5˚C to 15˚C, 20 minutes are the limit for
‘OUT OF REFRIGERATION’. Achievement of the time limit is
poorly documented.
Cold Chain Challenges- Transportation
• Lack of awareness on Food Safety, Quality and
Defense.
• Insanitary storage.
• Mixed load with multiple destinations prone to
have inadequate segregation.
• Lack of refrigeration.
• Improper truck inner insulation.
• Leak detection and mould growth.
• Lack of communication between truckers and
food producers.
 Cold Chain Legislative Directives/
Guidelines
Reference can be made to the following:
• EC 852/ 2004
• Guidance on Temperature Control Legislation
in UK.
• FSMA 2011
• Good Distribution Practice, USP, 2013
(Pharmaceutical Transportation).
 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA)
• Stipulates procedures for cold storage, pre-cooling and
cleanliness of shipping containers and trucks before loading,
and temperature monitoring during transportation.
• To validate compliance, shippers must maintain temperature
logs that prove there have been no temperature spikes during
the entire shipping and storage process.
• The aim of the FSMA is to shift food safety tactics from
response to prevention.
• According to Markets and Markets’ “Cold Chain Report,” the
cold chain market will exceed $271 billion by 2022.
Cold Chain Condition
Cold Chain Handling
Principles
Risks

IMPLEMENTATION OF COLD CHAIN

MANAGEMENT
 Implementation of Cold Chain
Management

• To plan Cold Chain Conditions (CCC).

• To plan Cold Chain Handling (CCH).
• To plan operating procedures as part of HACCP &
Internal Food Safety Programmes.
• To educate and create awareness of food safety
for cold truckers and responsible personnel.
 Cold Chain Condition’s Goals
• Safety- Foods delivered are safe for consumption.
• Quality- Products should reserved as much as
possible of the qualities during the course of the
Cold Chain Journey.
• Practicality- CCC should be attainable and
practical using recent logistic and monitoring
technologies.
• Standardisation- according to current available
guidelines.
 Cold Chain Conditions (CCC)

• To study the maximum and minimum storage

temperature.
• To study maximum and minimum holding
temperature.
• To study the period of time that a food can be
allowed to remain unrefrigerated.
 Cold Chain Condition’s Principles

• To set the ‘NEVER WARMER’ rules.

• To set the Maximum ‘OUT OF REFRIGERATION’
rules.
• To set the FIRST EXPIRY FIRST OUT rules.
 Cold Chain Risks (P-P-P)
• Product (Raw Material Quality, Ingredients
and Formulation).
• Process (Speed and effectiveness of the
chilling operation, additional process such as
heating, pasteurisation and et cetera).
• Packaging (Ordinary packaging or Advanced
packaging).
Precooling
-Methods
-Principles
-Quality

PROCESS AFTER PRODUCTION

 Achievable CCC- Process After
Production
• Fragile foods should be subjected to precooling
process after production.
• Precooling is crucial to eliminate heat from food
after production due to refrigerated system
during transportation is intended to reserve the
temperature of the load and not to eradicate
additional heat.
• Minimizing the delay from production to
precooling will improve the product’s shelf-life as
this period demonstrated the highest
temperature and reduction of shelf-life rate.
 Methods of Precooling
• Forced-air cooling
• Hydrocooling
• Room cooling
• Vacuum cooling
• Cryogenic cooling
Justification of Precooling Method
• Product’s mechanical properties.
• Sensitivity to chilling or freezing injuries.
• Production volume (Flow of product into
facility).
• Financial considerations.
 Precooling Principles
• To achieve uniform precooling.
• To achieve the preferred temperature profile
during precooling, which can be acquired
when the temperature at the very point of
inside the pallet reaches a temperature range
that encourages the preservation of the foods.
• Failure to regulate the precooling time and
operating conditions might lead to deficient or
excessive temperature decreases.
 Quality of Precooling
• It depends greatly on the product’s packaging.
• The packaging design and material can be
affecting the flow of the cold fluid inside the
cartons and heat and mass transfer rates at
the surface of the food.
• The current packaging might provide greater
protection against mechanical damages rather
than proper precooling.
 Quality of Precooling
• Improper precooling results in uneven
precooling uniformity and decline in efficiency
of precooling.
• Effective precooling methods and procedures
will improve the food preservation.
 Cold Chain Risks (T-T-T)
• Time- temperature tolerance studies the
relationship between storage temperature
and storage shelf life/ quality.
• Time- temperature tolerance ( Rate of
products degradation, Vulnerability Rate
against Psychrophilic Bacteria, Temperature
Abuse).
Cold Chain Condition’s Study Methods
• To evaluate the Microbiological Risk
Assessment.
• To evaluate the HACCP-based risk
management strategy for the food.
• Physical tests examining time/ temperature
effects on the food quality
• Assessment of the time/ temperature impact
on the shelf life.
 Microbiological Risk Assessment for
CCC
• Microbiological Testing for Packaging.
• Microbiological Testing for Shel-Life & Storage
Properties.
• Predictive Microbiological Model –
Aim for:
Microbial Contaminant, Growth against
Temperature & Time, Food Pathogens, Food Safety,
Mechanistic Model & Microbial Contamination.
Microbial Contamination Risks in Supply
Chain
 Cold Chain Handling (CCH)
Cold Chain Handling will be covering respective
areas to support (by awareness) the Cold Chain
Conditions:
• Warehouse
• Dispatch and Delivery
• Transport
Cold Chain Handling carries out the following:
• Temperature & Humidity Validation/ Mapping
 Awareness on Good Transportation Control
during Storage, Distribution & Transportation
• Good hygiene and sanitation practices for
involved personnel and containers/ trucks.
• Taking good and preventative steps for
transport-related equipment and conditions.
• Pest control
• Sanitation procedures related with loading
and unloading activities.
• Good communication between shippers and
food producers.
 Awareness on Good Transportation Control
during Storage, Distribution & Transportation
• Containers/ Trucks cleanliness correlated directly
and indirectly to the temperature fluctuations
and might be resulting in microbial outbreaks.
• Therefore, containers/ trucks cleanliness can be
validated by ATP data.
• All activities related to containers/ trucks must be
documented and monitored.
• Containers/ trucks must be inspected from time
to time.
 Temperature & Humidity Validation /
Mapping
• Inspect air temperature recorders and thermometers to
ascertain the temperature history of the product.
• Visually check the product appearance, looking for signs of
thawing which may include evidence of drip loss, ice on the
inside of the pack, soiled packaging, etc.
• Undertake a non-destructive investigation by measuring the
temperature between adjacent packages or boxes.
• If any of the above indicate temperatures have been too high
then an invasive test inspection may be required.
LOGISTIC AND MONITORING
TECHNOLOGIES FOR COLD CHAIN
 Current Logistic Solutions
Real-time sensing
Sensor tags that can be attached to individual pallets or cartons and can
communicate with a master unit installed on the vehicle to provide real-time
data about temperature, shock, light exposure, air quality and other factors.

Real-time location tracking

Solution that uses GPS for real-time tracking of a shipment to provide up-to-
date delivery estimates, current location and progress reports even when the
cargo is in the hands of a third-party logistics provider.

Geofencing and route fencing

Solution should be able to send an alert in real time if the cargo deviates from
its planned route or strays from authorized waypoints, to prevent diversion
and theft.
 Current Logistic Solutions
Stationary and movement detection

Solution that can identify whether the shipment is moving or

stalled, especially en- route between waypoints.

Critical alert and notifications

Immediate access to data when a load goes over temperature

or out of its authorized route to solve problem in time.

Reporting and data analytics

The logs can prove that the cold chain was not broken, or if it
was, help diagnose what went wrong.
Current Logistic Solutions
All modes for global transportation
A solution that works with all modes, on land, sea and air,
without relying on carriers or third parties to provide
infrastructure

Clear chain of custody and control

Solution that provides guaranteed evidence of shipment custody

and control throughout the supply chain.

Ability to integrate with EDI

To facilitate information sharing, collaboration and transparency

along the entire supply chain.
 Current Logistic Solutions

Visualisation portal
A solution with a web-based and mobile-enabled portal that
lets you access data in real-time and gives you control over
order and shipment tracking

24/7 Call centre

To assist in alerting, escalation and remediation as necessary,

including contacting law enforcement.
Automated Temperature Monitoring and Control
Efento Transport Monitoring Device
Netoria’s Smart Temperature Tag
Calibration and Periodic Verification
 Reference
• Australian Food Cold Chain Logistics Guidelines, 2017.
• Managing The Cold Chain for Quality and Safety, EU Commission.
• Good Distribution Practices, USP, 2013.
• Guide to Refrigerated Transport, published by International Institute of
Refrigeration, ISBN 290 36 3372X.
• A Food Industry Specification for Defining the Technical Standards and
Procedures for the Evaluation of Temperature and Time-Temperature
Indicators.
• Technical Manual No 35 published by Campden & Chorleywood Food
Research Association.