The UN report suggests that 190 million Indians remain undernourished despite adequate food production as 92,000 crores per annum food is wasted in India. The wastage is monumental and reveals the loopholes in post-food production process and cold chain management. Perishable food, as the name suggests, has a short shelf life and requires to be stored at a specific temperature, but due to insufficient cold storage facilities, 16% of fruits and vegetables are wasted. However, many factors lead to the wastage of perishable food; this article explores them and gives a solution.
- Inadequate infrastructure
Infrastructure is fundamental to cold chain logistics. Even today, basic needs such as road connectivity, efficient warehousing, agile transportation and systematic cold storage facilities are unavailable in many places. There are warehouses where food is directly exposed to sunlight, damaging the shelf life of perishable food. Additionally, cold chain vehicles and storage rooms require high-voltage refrigerators dependent on electricity. And India has a record of power shortage supply. This results in the wastage of food and massive economic loss. - Improper packaging
Packaging is one of the crucial processes of cold chain management. Perishable food is stored, transported and delivered at various places. In this process, shipments have to go through bumpy roads, loading and unloading procedures, and if the packaging is improper, it can tilt, break or spill the food. In some cases, when packaging is infused with the food, it can poison the food as packaging materials are full of chemicals. Furthermore, improper packaging can form bacteria in some perishable food, making it toxic and inedible. This negatively impacts the consumer, environment and your business. - Lack of cold storage
Perishable food requires a temperature-controlled environment to extend its shelf life. Confectionary items such as ice cream and milkshakes need to be stored at -18°C. Further, food items such as meat require 1-3°C, tomatoes require 7-10°C, cut green leafy vegetables require 5°C. This way, each perishable item has a different temperature requirements and any drop or change in the temperature can spoil the food. Many storage rooms and cold chain vehicles lack cold storage technologies, making it challenging to cater to the different temperature requirements. - Unorganized logistics partner
From farm to fork, cold chain logistics requires robust planning and technologies for efficient logistics processes. Delays in transportation, inefficient technologies, traditional equipment, poor coordination, and lack of proper planning can lead to enormous food and financial losses. This significantly affects your business and the farmers who are underpaid after a whole year of investment. An unorganized logistics partner can disrupt the cold chain economy.
One-stop solution
Be it cold storage facilities, advanced technologies, proper transportation, robust planning or strong coordination, TESSOL covers it all. Food wastage and financial losses are impossible with a TESSOL proprietary solution. Our monitoring system will allow you to view your shipment from the farm to fork, plus our carriers and cartridges will keep perishable items cool till the last mile.
It is time to ensure that no individual goes to bed on an empty stomach. As one of the leading companies in cold chain management, we aim to minimize the undernourished percentage by providing high-end technologies. We have a robust architecture for all cold chain needs and the best facilities for perishable food products. For further information, connect with us.
