Ever questioned how we manage to have exotic fruits, veggies, foods, and ice creams from around the world throughout the year? Cold storage is the solution to our modern-day agriculture problems. So, what is a cold storage?
Thanks to Cold Storage or temperature-controlled warehouses enable us to enjoy fresh vegetables or fruits in the off-season. We are also enjoying a fruit or vegetable in its peak season in the remotest area. A cold storage warehouse is a location with low temperatures where perishable goods may be kept longer. The cold storage units allow you to consistently produce high-quality goods all year.
Why Do We Need the Cold Storage Facilities?
There is nothing new about ancient storage. Even before refrigerators and freezers were invented, people stored food at cool temperatures because they knew that by doing so, produce would stay fresher longer and its quality (and safety) would be preserved.
Of course, we no longer keep goods refrigerated in Victorian ice houses and larders. Industrial-scale cold storage is a specialized, high-tech operation that frequently has high levels of automation. It has to be. The market for frozen foods worldwide was worth 260.8 billion dollars in 2018. By 2026, this is expected to increase by 40%, reaching an estimated value of 366.3 billion dollars.
Main Features of the Cold Storage Facilities
In this section, we are going to discuss the main features of cold storage facilities. They are given hereunder:
- A Small Walk-In Freezers. Cold storage refers to tiny walk-in freezers or coolers that range in size from 1,000 square feet to 200,000 square feet or more, as well as warehouses that are kept at freezing or lower (chiller) temperatures.
- Extends the Shelf Life of Different Agriculture Products. Fruits, vegetables, chemicals, dairy products, processed meat, jaggery, pulses, spices, dry fruits, frozen meals, and pharmaceuticals are all stored in cold storage facilities. So, it helps in maintaining and extending food’s shelf life without sacrificing its nutritional content.
- The Cold Storage Saves the Perishable Goods From Degradation. When perishable goods are kept at the incorrect temperature, microbial and bacterial activity causes the food to degrade and alter in color, texture, and flavor.
- The Cold Storage Facility For the Packaging, and Exporting. Additionally, cold storage facilities provide infrastructure along the entire supply chain, including pre-cooling, weighing, trying to sort, classification, waxing, packaging, and shipping nearly anywhere in refrigerated courier service around the world, ensuring that the product is kept at the specified temperature until it is in the hands of the customer.
The Structure: What is a Cold Storage Unit?
In order to preserve the quality of the goods for sale, cold storage requires fresh electric-powered facilities to keep fresh and/or frozen perishable fruits or vegetables, meats, fish, or milk products at a suitable temperature. The fundamental requirements for a simple cold storage unit are as follows:
- 100% emergency power plants
- Particular Doors (PUF or similar paneled)
- PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) hardware
- system of dock levelers
- Ammonia is a hazardous refrigerant used in central plants; nowadays, Freon is preferable.
- modernized panels for insulating
- Advanced-Grade Reefer Container
- Remote-controlled shuttle racking system, bins, and pallets
- A robotic mobile racking system
- automatic entrances
- PV solar panels with a vapor absorption
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Understanding the Market of the Cold Storage Facilities
Let us understand the market of cold storage facilities. It’s interesting to note that the increase in frozen spending from 2020, which was previously believed to be related to availability, has had outstanding “stickiness,”. It may result in constant growth in year-over-year spending rather than a decline in frozen category sales income.
The Need for the Cold Storage in Our Modern World
Customers preferred frozen home dinners because they were simpler to produce and because there was less food waste, which is common with perishable goods. Despite the return of fresh products to shelves, the expansion of the frozen market was primarily driven by millennials and Gen Xers. Here is what happened:
- Supply Chain. The supply chain continues to see shortages of baby formula, fresh produce, antiseptics, toiletries, and chicken, confirming the legitimate fear that many individuals had when looking for backup meal plans.
- Safety: More freezer capacity reduced the number of trips and exposure risks at supermarkets. Some others even used their federal stimulus funds to buy a second freezer to expand the amount of freezer space in their houses.
- Choice: Customers responded favorably to grocery stores offering more frozen food options (including ethnic, healthy, and environmentally friendly options) as well as a higher proportion of their total floor space devoted to frozen.
Conclusion
So, what is a cold storage unit? The cold storage unit is a type of warehouse that assists in keeping the products at freezing point. The cold storage unit is made for the storage of perishable goods. It extends their shelf life to a greater extent.
