Cold Supply Chain

The term cold chain or cool chain denotes the series of actions and equipment applied to maintain a
product within a specified low temperature range from harvest/production to consumption. A cold chain
is a temperature-controlled supply chain.
Cold chains are common in the food and pharmaceutical industries and in some chemical shipments. One
common temperature range for a cold chain in pharmaceutical industries is 2 to 8 °C (36 to 46 °F), but the
specific temperature (and time at temperature) tolerances depend on the actual product being shipped.
Unique to fresh produce cargoes, the cold chain requires to additionally maintain product specific
environment parameters which include air quality levels (carbon dioxide, oxygen, humidity and others),
which makes this the most complicated cold chain to operate.
This is important in the supply of vaccines to distant clinics in hot climates served by poorly developed
transport networks. Disruption of a cold chain due to war may produce consequences like smallpox
outbreaks in the Philippines during the Spanish American War.
There have been numerous events where vaccines have been shipped to third world countries with little
to no cold chain infrastructure (Sub-Sahara Africa) where the vaccines were inactivated due to excess
exposure to heat. Patients that thought they were being immunized, were put at greater risk due to the
inactivated vaccines they received.
Challenges faced by Cold Chain: -
Regulation is on the rise.
Globalization and an increase in the number of food safety and pharma counterfeit incidents are
prompting governments to tighten regulations on production and supply chains. Establishing preventive
measures and harmonizing regulations are major issues for the food and pharma industries.
An increasing focus on quality and product sensitivity.
In the food industry, the big trend is an increased focus on quality, health, and integrity. To win the repeat
business of fickle and demanding consumers, manufacturers must ensure an optimal experience with the
brand. For cold chain products, that means avoiding the changes in texture and taste that occur when a
shipment strays outside recommended temperatures, as well as decreasing the amount of processing for
proteins such as fish.
Nestle using 3PL for Cold Chain Example
Nestlé Canada is on a mission to make its supply chain as lean and customer focused as possible across
its many business units—including its substantial cold chain.
"Nestlé has embraced Lean over the past few years, and we're focused on the consumer value
proposition," says Greig Jewell, director, Lean value stream, supply chain operations, Nestlé Canada. The
ongoing effort currently includes using Lean value stream design in the company's ice cream factories to
increase capacity, find more efficient ways to operate, and empower employees to solve problems.
Bringing IOT to Cold Chain
When food enters a transportation arena, it basically becomes invisible. Nobody knows where it is.
Nobody knows what conditions it’s being shipped under. Verigo start-up in US the Verigo quality
management system combines wireless “Pod” devices, mobile apps, and cloud-based record keeping, Pod
Quality outputs actionable quality metrics stakeholders can use.
By utilizing over 30 years of research from the USDA, and various shelf life studies with quality conscious
berry growers such as Driscoll’s and Berry World, Pod Quality translates the recorded temperature data
into an actionable continuous quality score, called “Product Life”. Product Life displays the relationship
between a variety of variables - commodity type, initial freshness condition, and overall temperature
exposure - and translates them to a single actionable metric via Verigo’s Product Life Models.