Download Jacobs researchers find flaws in food logistics

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Jacobs researchers find flaws in food logistics
Prof. Dr. Michael Hülsmann, Professor for Systems Management
Each year 35% of perishable foods are thrown away before reaching the consumer. In
many cases a lack of refrigeration or insufficient cooling during transport lead to food
decay and waste, say logistics experts at Jacobs University. After studying worldwide
food transportation they found that disruptions in the cooling process could be
attributed to communication errors and disorganization at the interface of
transportation.
April 18, 2011
Rotting bananas, yellow-colored broccoli or mushy strawberries are not what customers like
to find at their local supermarket. But when picking fresh produce at the vegetable counter
consumers are fairly unaware of how much food is deemed unfit for human consumption and
ends up on the rubbish heap. The problem usually starts during transport, when even small
changes in temperature are enough to impair the quality of fresh food.
Michael Hülsmann, Professor for Systems Management at Jacobs University and PhD
student Verena Brenner have investigated the matter and found insufficient cooling during
transport to be a major issue. Each year more than a third of fresh food produced worldwide
is destroyed before reaching the consumer.
Finding the critical points in cool chains
To find out exactly how and where perishable foods are damaged, the Jacobs researchers
looked at more than 100 literary sources. “The most critical point is the interface of a
transport chain,” says Verena Brenner. “When food is on its way to the supermarket different
means of transport are used. Reloading the fresh goods from container to van, or sending
them from the warehouse onto the road is tricky,” explains the Bremen-based scientist. “If
cooling systems aren’t put in place to keep the temperature at a constant level, heat or
severe cold will have an adverse effect on the quality of fresh food.”
Furthermore employees in food transportation are often unaware that even the slightest
temperature change can damage the produce. Containers and storage rooms should be kept
at certain temperatures to guarantee sufficient cooling – a prerequisite that is frequently
underestimated resulting in considerable loss. “With strawberries for example, two hours of
inadequate refrigeration can lead to wasting 10% of the fruit,” says Brenner.
Positive effects on the environment
Improving cooling systems not only cuts waste and financial loss, but also has an effect on
the environment. “A rotting food unit will set off 4.5 times its weight in carbon dioxide, which
contributes to global warming. Such emissions could be avoided," argues Brenner. "If less
food was wasted, production processes could be adjusted accordingly and thus energy,
water and fertilizer usage be reduced.”
According to the Jacobs researchers, efficiency of cooling processes could be improved by
fairly straight-forward means. Co-ordinating employees in transportation through
communication systems such as "radio-frequency-identification" (RFID) could be a solution.
The logistics experts also advocate reducing long breaks within the transport chain and
keeping reloads to a minimum. Furthermore they advise to continuously monitor perishable
foods in order to identify and eradicate product-specific weak points.
The logistics study, which was supported by the Bremen-based logistics company Cool
Chain Group, will be published in the coming weeks as part of the series “Beiträge zum
strategischen Management” (Contributions to strategic management) (Issue 28, ISBN: 9783-938786-26-0).