Reducing food waste during transport

THE UAE imports nearly 80% of its food products, and re-exports half of this across the Middle East.  In a year, it moves 10 million tonnes of food but over 32% of these can go to waste.  While this may be seen as an acceptable cost of doing business, it can still be reduced or eliminated. Furthermore, food loss during transport is not always a deficiency on the part of production, manufacturing and storage processes, according to Brent Melvin, general manager for the supply chain division of Massar Solutions. In a report in ConstructionWeek Online.com, he said cold chain operations play a role in reducing food losses during transit.

Temperature management and efficient logistics guard against food losses, Mr Melvin said, but in the UAE, many reefer trucks can only protect up to 30^oC when desert temperatures can range up to 50^oC.  

Equipping vehicle telematics monitoring and management technology in trucks is the way to go. Telematics streamlines delivery and facilitates control, he said. This technology allows companies to remotely monitor their reefers in real time for set points, refrigerator box malfunction, etc.  However, in UAE there are up to 30% of reefers which are not yet equipped with telematics, Mr Melvin said. Read the full report.