Smart Logistics
This concept generally involves all stakeholders, from the producer to the transporter and the seller, all the way to the final customer. In the event of a problem, it is not only the quality of the product or its durability that is at stake, but also the health of the consumer or patient.
According to Irstea, 60% of food finds itself in a refrigerated environment from the time of its production until it arrives on the consumer’s plate. The organization estimated that in 2014, 360 million tons of food were wasted due to breaks in the cold chain.
Thus, agri-food industrialists have a strong interest in employing new technologies within their transport processes. Whether they are producers, logistics providers, or suppliers, each actor in the production chain can install sensors that not only detect variations and send alerts but can also geolocate the goods and measure the influence of the environment on the longevity of a product.
A wide range of sensors
In addition to temperature sensors, numerous solutions can be deployed in the cold chain, such as a light sensor for monitoring the lighting level, which greatly affects the growth of mold on fruits and vegetables. There are also door opening and closing detectors to be alerted in case of unexpected openings of a fridge.
Moreover, it may be wise to monitor cooling systems to prevent breakdowns. Geolocation remains crucial in analyzing the source of a break in the cold chain in order to solve the problem or redirect goods to a different warehouse. Low power connectivity technologies like LTE-M and NB-IoT are particularly well-suited to this type of application.
