What Is a Cold Chain?

Cold chain refers to certain food raw materials, processed foods or semi-finished products, special biological products and medicines that have been acquired, processed, and inactivated, and then processed, stored, transported, distributed, and retailed and used in the process In China, all links are always in the special low-temperature environment necessary for the product, reducing the loss, preventing pollution and deterioration, and ensuring the special supply chain system of product food safety, biological safety, and drug safety.

Cold chain logistics generally refers to a systematic project in which refrigerated and frozen items are always in the specified low temperature environment during production, storage, transportation, and sales, and before consumption. It is established with the progress of science and technology and the development of refrigeration technology. It is a low-temperature logistics process based on refrigeration technology and using refrigeration technology as a means. ^[1]

Cold chain equipment is defined from the perspective of the supply chain. Each product has its own uniqueness, and its supply chain is also unique;
Frozen products are called frozen products because the environment in which the product is required is usually low temperature or low humidity. The supply chain of frozen products is called cold chain; equipment used to manufacture low temperature and low humidity environments is called cold chain equipment .

Specific cold chain equipment includes: low temperature cold storage, room temperature cold storage, low temperature refrigerator, ordinary refrigerator, refrigerated truck,

For perishable food, the cold storage temperature is monitored through the cold chain to ensure its excellent quality and safety. Cold chain lies in being able to control the temperature of perishable products, ensure the safety of their use, and ensure that consumers still have good quality products when they buy. If the temperature control is not accurate enough, it will lead to a series of product quality degradation. In addition to changes in general product characteristics, it also includes changes in tissue structure, color changes, damage during collision and extrusion, and microbial reproduction. Every link of the cold chain, from the moment the product is picked to the time it is sold, requires participation in control. Every link in the chain can make mistakes and break the cold chain, or on the platform of the warehouse, during transportation, during storage, or in retail supermarkets, and it is easy to cause problems. If a link breaks, it will affect the needs of the end consumer.

Because the cold chain is to ensure the quality of refrigerated and frozen goods, the core requirement is to maintain a low temperature environment.

Status of China's Cold Chain Logistics Industry

There is a lot of room for development in the domestic cold chain logistics industry, which is mainly reflected in the storage and transportation of products such as quick freezing and fruits and vegetables. According to incomplete statistics, since 1995, the output of China's quick-frozen food has increased at a rate of 20%, and it has even increased at a high rate of 35% in the past three years, which is much higher than the global average growth rate of 9%. "Sanquan" has become the "leading player" in the national frozen food market with an annual sales of 500 million yuan.

China is the world's largest producer of fruits and vegetables. In 2005, the total demand for fruit in the country reached 74 million tons, with a per capita demand of 55.72 kg. In 2010, China's total demand for fruit reached approximately 80 million tons, with a corresponding per capita demand of 57.31 kg. In the same year, China's total demand for vegetables was 29.517 million tons, with a per capita of 222.25 kg. In 2010, China's total demand for vegetables reached approximately 308.08 million tons, and the per capita demand was 217.84 kg.

It is said that such a large frozen and refrigerated demand market will inevitably lead to a substantial rise in the cold chain industry. However, as far as the current status quo is concerned, it has a serious lag and cannot fully meet people's increasing demand. This situation is particularly prominent in large cities .

The gap between the domestic and foreign cold chain markets

More than 90% of agricultural products from Europe, the United States, Japan and other developed countries enter the cold chain system, while the proportion of vegetables in the cold chain system in China currently accounts for only 5% of all vegetables, meat accounts for 15%, and aquatic products only twenty three%. Even for products that are transported using the cold chain, the cold chain is interrupted during the process of dismantling and retailing from the place of origin to the bazaar market, which is not complete.

Developed countries have formed a complete cold chain logistics system for agricultural products, and fresh and perishable agricultural products have accounted for most of the total sales, and are growing. Developed countries use cold chain logistics to reduce agricultural product losses and reduce costs, thereby indirectly increasing agricultural product output and agricultural output value.

Many domestic products do not need refrigerated trucks in food logistics distribution. Taking Beijing as an example, more than 70% of food distribution is only delivered by ordinary transportation vehicles. Not only

Primary agricultural products: vegetables, fruits; meat, poultry, eggs; aquatic products; flower products. ^[1]

Processed food: quick-frozen food; packaged cooked food such as poultry, meat, aquatic products; ice cream and dairy products; fast food ingredients.

Special commodities: biological products, medicines. ^[3]