Food waste reduction solutions

AS THE second largest exporter of agri-food produce in the world after the United States, the Netherlands has always maintained prominence in food logistics, and its expertise in this field is expected to play an even more important role in the years to come.

As food suppliers know, transporting and distributing food produce whilst ensuring that these remain  in prime condition is one of the biggest challenges facing the food logistics sector.

“Efficiency and economic viability is affected by damaged goods and food spoilage, something  which  should  be minimised given the increased need for produce,” says Adeline Tan, senior project manager of the Netherlands  Foreign Investment Agency, an operational unit of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs.

About €25 billion worth of produce are discarded by the food industry annually, says Ms Tan.  To minimise food wastage along the supply chain, the Dutch have developed several innovative solutions that aim to transform food logistics. Although seemingly straightforward, the solutions to reduce food wastage along the supply chain can prove to be arduous.

PEF technology for juices

Extending the shelf life of fresh products naturally increases their prospects of being sold. Hoogesteger BV of Zwanenburg and Wageningen UR in Wageningen are collaborating on pulsed electric field (PEF)technology as a preservation method for freshly squeezed juice. This technology developed specifically for Hoogesteger is called Fresh Micro Pulse treatment. By undergoing this technology, incoming fresh juice is first preheated to half the normal pasteurising temperature to condition the microorganisms within the produce for treatment. The treatment process itself consists of two opposing electrodes being applied to the undesirable microorganisms, such as yeast or mould, causing a burst of electricity which then kills the cells.

The end product is able to retain the same taste, colour and nutrition.  For retailers, the advantage lies in the increased shelf life of 21 days from the norm of 7 days. This consequently means a reduction in cost depreciation as well as less product wastage.

Whilst PEF as a mild preservation method is not new, using it on juice has not been done before. The Fresh Micro Pulse is the first treatment of its kind allowed in the European market.

The freshness chip

Knowing the factors that influence the freshness and longevity of food products will provide a more accurate data of their condition.  The Pasteur Consortium, composed of major companies (Philips), research institutes and universities (TU Delft), and contributing partners from Spain, Austria and Belgium, is developing a chip that may one day replace the “best before” date on food products. Known as the Pasteur Chip, this tracker will help decrease food wastage by 25% to 40%.

By combining multiple sensor packages with intelligent radio-frequency (RF) identification, the patented sensor tag will monitor aspects such as temperature, fungal growth and humidity of the food produce whilst these are in transit. The signals read out by the transmitter are modulated by a capacitive sensor that changes depending on the properties intended to be measured, for example temperature, pressure or moisture. The signals are then bounced back at anotheButy sportowe Nike