COLD CHAIN QUALITY REQUIREMENTS

Based on
• ICFE Quality requirements in the Ice Cream & Frozen Foods Cold Chain July 2002.
• PRIMARY DISTRIBUTION VEHICLES

TEMPERATURE CONTROL

Air Temperature
< -27 C = good practice
< -25 C = minimum requirement

The Standard for Product Temperature is the overriding condition. Air temperature control is the necessary quality measure to assure the desired product temperature at all times during the journey. There are conflicting views on the effectiveness of pre-cooling vehicles prior to loading. Ingress of warm air may ice up the coils and cause condensation on the vehicle walls. The icing up of coils could also lead to auto-defrost at an early stage in the journey. This issue should be discussed with hauliers at a local level.

• Temperature Control Requirements

When the vehicle is designed for frozen food transport, then the following requirements apply:
SECONDARY DISTRIBUTION VEHICLES

TEMPERATURE CONTROL

Air Temperature
< -25 C = good practice
< -22 C = minimum requirement

The Standard for Product Temperature is the overriding condition.
Air temperature control is the necessary quality measure to assure the desired product temperature at all times during the journey. Consequently sufficient 'cold buffer' must be provided at the beginning of the delivery tour and starting air temperature should be well below the minimum required temperature, allowing for brief upward air temperature fluctuations during delivery.