Sector food - Cold food transport containers

1. Transporting chilled and frozen goods

Here is some market information* that will help you get a better grasp of what temperature-controlled food logistics involves.

• 37% of food spending, excluding beverages and eating out, concerns chilled goods and ready meals.
• By 2027, the potential of the French market for temperature-controlled transport of foodstuffs is expected to reach €7.6 billion.
• Foodstuffs (bulk, packaged, semi-finished and finished goods) represent 91% of the market for temperature-controlled overland transport.

In spite of the opportunities offered by this market, the temperature-controlled food transport sector is faced with numerous challenges that are driving operators to rethink their logistics to boost their operational performance and improve their TCO:

Structural challenges

• Increasing transport costs;
• Labour shortages;

Current issues

• Tightening of environmental regulations;
• Changes in food consumption habits.

Against this background, managing multi-temperature flows represents the challenge of achieving optimised, sustainable food distribution capable of:

• Delivering, at the right temperature, any quantity of goods to any destination at any time;
• Complying with the regulations;
• Reducing the different types of nuisance – GHGs, noise and traffic congestion.

By adopting multimodal passive cold chain solutions to manage multi-temperature flows, it is possible to meet the demands of out-of-hours deliveries, with specific temperature profiles whilst reducing operational costs, curbing your carbon footprint and contributing to the development of more environmentally friendly temperature-controlled transport. Insulated food carrier must be easy to clean.

* According to the study Le marché du transport frigorifique à horizon 2025, Les Échos Études, 2022.

2. Reducing food waste

Breaks in the cold chain are responsible for the wastage of 475 million tonnes of food worldwide. A phenomenon that could be avoided by:

• Learning about the health and food safety risks: cooling a product in the right way at the right time can slow the ripening process without altering the organoleptic properties of the foodstuff concerned.
• Deploying an optimised cold chain logistics system: thinking globally about the cold chain and the existing solutions adapted to the logistics organisation, to the performances sought and also any changes in the regulations [nuisance factors, pollution, safety, sustainability and recyclability].

A responsible cold chain must meet three basic criteria: the product must be sound, subjected to continuous refrigeration and refrigerated as early as possible.

Foodstuff storage temperatures:

Initially, it is necessary to briefly review the needs in order to be able to plan a practical, anti-waste cold chain logistics operation:

• Time in transit
• Outside temperature
• Type and volume of the goods transported
• Type and size of vehicle used

These initial parameters will help to guide the choice of the insulated technology required, its level of qualification as well as the type and quantity of cold needed to maintain a steady temperature. Afterwards, a proper analytical logistics audit is indispensable to be able to implement a solution adapted to the customer’s actual operational conditions and capable of achieving its objectives (financial, environmental, organisational, markets, etc.).

3. Compliance with food safety regulations

In France, the obligations relating to the transport of perishable goods are laid down in the Rural Code (cold food, hot food, food pans, pharmatical products…). Except for certain specific cases:

• The transport vehicle must have a certificate of technical compliance [ATP certificate]
• The temperature during transport must be recorded for frozen goods [Regulation 37/2005]
• Goods must be transported at the temperatures and conditions required by the Hygiene Package.

The Agreement on the International Carriage of Perishable Foodstuffs (ATP) is concerns cross-border international transport. The ATP is a United Nations agreement signed by 48 countries, which specifies the special equipment to be used for temperature-controlled transport.

Cémafroid is the ATP competent authority in France. It operates under a public service delegation under the responsibility of the Ministry of Agriculture.

This approval is required for:

• Delivery of temperature-sensitive foodstuffs over distances of more than 80 km [total] from the place of loading;
• Intermediate handling (break-bulk) during delivery rounds.

The ATP certificate, issued to newly registered vehicles, defines the vehicle’s thermal insulation performance by characterising its overall coefficient of heat transfer (K coefficient).

It is the value of the K coefficient that determines the type of temperature-sensitive goods that can be carried:

Normally insulated equipment (IN) has a K coefficient ≤ 0.70 W/m².°C = transport ability of chilled goods only

Heavily insulated equipment (IR) has a K coefficient ≤ 0,40 W/ m².°C = transport ability of chilled and frozen goods

ATP certificates are valid for the first six years after the equipment goes into service and are renewable after 6 years and 9 years. After 12 years, it is also possible to carry out compliance tests for a renewal for a further 6 years.

Every item of insulated equipment has an ATP plate containing:

• The numbers of the body and refrigeration unit test reports
• The K value
• The thermal class rating followed by the ATP certificate expiry date

Owners of insulated equipment are responsible for renewing their certificate through approved test centres.

Active cold chain solutions are closed-circuit continuous cold production systems. These are mechanical refrigeration systems, like reefer units, which are powered by an external energy source, often a fossil fuel.

According to a study carried out in 2023 in connection with the ICR, it has been shown that with a mechanical cooling system keeping a container between +2°C and +4°C, the energy consumption necessary to maintain the temperature in the container is equal to 2.2 l of diesel per hour of deliveries, i.e. 6,440 g of CO2 emitted. Energy-intensive, expensive and requiring servicing and maintenance, even though they still equip 150,000 vehicles on France’s roads, active cold systems are gradually giving way to more sober, cheaper alternatives.

The different temperature-controlled food transport operators are paying more and more attention when making their decisions to:

• The environmental impact of the solution to be deployed in order to meet the target of reducing urban pollution by 40% by 2025, and be able to continue delivering in urban areas in spite of the widespread roll-out of low emission zones;
• Additional operating costs: supply and consumption of resources, maintenance and immobilisation of equipment. 

Competitive advantages of passive cooling

Passive cold chain systems are based on the principles of thermodynamics related to phase changes in materials. In fact, the energy contained in certain materials and/or chemical elements can be used to autonomously maintain a specific temperature inside a container without any additional energy source or connection.

In a study carried out in 2023 in connection with the ICR, it was shown that with a CO2 injection-type passive cold chain system the energy consumption needed to maintain a steady temperature is equal to 0.43 l of diesel/hour, i.e. 6.02 g of CO2 emitted for each hour of deliveries.

Do you need more informations about sizes, capacities of our insulated food carriers ? Contact us by email on our web site or by phone.