Two significant ways to cut greenhouse gases are reducing food waste and improving refrigeration. San Francisco-based Therma is tackling both with a refrigeration monitoring device that could significantly reduce emissions across the $585 billion global cold-chain. Its sensor is designed to minimize commercial food and industrial waste with alerts about equipment failure, power outages and human error. Early users include fast food giants McDonald’s and Burger King, convenience store chain 7-Eleven and Wyndham Hotels.
Trends in automation and the growth of the Internet of Things, which connects many building devices, can accelerate the adoption of Building Automation Systems across the global commercial building stock by making smaller systems more cost-effective. Deploying sensor technologies can dramatically improve efficiency, safety, and profitability, while reducing food and industrial safety risks.
Throughout the pandemic, changes in consumer behavior continue to ripple through the US food and agricultural supply chains. Distribution channels have been upended and companies that produce, convert, and deliver food to consumers and businesses are facing a web of interrelated risks and uncertainties across the value chain, from farmers to end-customer channels. Food-service suppliers, for example, faced abrupt order cancellations across their entire customer bases. That left many of them with excess stock that they couldn’t easily redirect to consumers because of packaging-size mismatches.
Food service distributors run an optimized and stable supply chain, with upstream orders coming in that anticipate downstream orders going out. Margins depend on there being a steady flow in both directions and having only a subset of products in inventory awaiting orders. Profit pools are bound to continue shifting, with M&A activity (including potential integration across the value chain) to be expected, raising the need for efficient, resilient supply chains.
How can players at each link in the food value chain work to design out waste while creating value for their business and stakeholders?
I enjoyed the write-up, Jess. In response to your discussion question, through greater communication and transparency at all stages in the food chain, the industry is far more cost effective and efficient. Ultimately, by upholding the referenced pillars of business, key players and stakeholders of the industry shall reap the benefits.
The article ‘Reducing Food Waste: Shelf Engine Bags $41M To Transform Grocery Supply Chain’ published recently by Crunchbase relates to the topic of conversation: news.crunchbase.com/news/reducing-food-waste-shelf-engine-bags-41m-to-transform-grocery-supply-chain/
Happy reading,
Josh
Great find! Thanks Josh