Knowledge Post:You do not know the cold chain logistics

In the emerging e-commerce increasingly popular at the same time, it is also facing a huge logistics bottleneck, so more and more cold chain logistics in front of people, what is the cold chain logistics, it in the end what kind of function, what kind of problems we are facing? Let's find out the answer together today!

Definition of cold chain logistics

Cold chain logistics (ColdChain Logistics) refers to the frozen food from production, storage, transportation, sales to consumption of each link are always in the provisions of the low-temperature environment, in order to ensure the quality of food, to reduce food loss of the system engineering. It is established with the progress of science and technology and the development of refrigeration technology, and is a low-temperature logistics process based on refrigeration technology and using refrigeration technology as a means.

Second, the scope of application of cold chain logistics

Applicable research scope mainly includes: primary development of agricultural products: vegetables, fruits; meat, poultry, eggs; aquatic products, flowers enterprise products. Processing as well as food: quick-frozen technology food, poultry, meat, aquatic products and other packaging treatment of cooked food; ice cream, dairy products, chocolate, fast food as raw materials. Special management commodities: medicines, etc.

Third, the value of cold chain logistics

(I) Extend fresh storage period

It is 1 to several times longer than ordinary cold storage, which can be sold at the right price and get high profit.

(ii) Reduce the amount of product loss

By controlling the temperature of fresh food through circulation, it reduces the growth of microorganisms and food corruption, and reduces the loss.

(iii) Extend the period of shelf life

Inhibit the respiratory state of fruits and vegetables by means of gas regulation to achieve the effect of preservation of fruits and vegetables.

(D) Adjustment of temperature and humidity

Through the method of gas regulation, the fresh food in the warehouse is in a dormant state, and the original quality is still maintained after leaving the warehouse.

Components

(A) temperature control and heat preservation

Constant temperature cold storage: the temperature relative humidity of the storage of these items have precise management requirements of the cold storage, including a constant temperature and humidity cold storage.

Controlled atmosphere cold storage: it can regulate the temperature, humidity, and control the storage process of oxygen, carbon dioxide and other gases, so that the storage process of fruits and vegetables in a dormant state, out of the warehouse is still to maintain the original quality. The so-called air-conditioning preservation is through the method of regulating gas to achieve the effect of preservation. Air conditioning is to reduce the oxygen concentration in the air from 21% to 3% ~ 5%, i.e., the preservation warehouse is based on the high temperature cold storage, plus a set of air conditioning system, the use of temperature and control of the oxygen content of the two aspects of the joint role, in order to achieve the purpose of inhibiting the respiratory state of fruits and vegetables after harvest.

(ii) Cold chain storage

Cold chain warehousing is generally used for fresh and live agricultural products, goods and articles are stored and kept through the warehouse. cold chain logistics is in the process of product production and circulation, due to pre-ordering or advance market forecast and temporary storage of products and goods. It is a comprehensive place reflecting the material activities of the factory, a transit station connecting production, supply and marketing, and plays an important auxiliary role in improving production efficiency.

(iii) Cold chain transmission

Under a certain temperature, classification and packaging of fresh agricultural products are realized through the use of necessary transmission machinery and equipment.

(iv) Cold chain loading and unloading

When loading and unloading the cold chain, the temperature of the goods is tested. The unloading time of refrigerated and frozen goods needs to be sealed with the unloading vehicles and unloading warehouses according to the stipulated requirements, so as to ensure that the temperature rise of the goods in the unloading process is controlled within the permissible range. And when the unloading operation is interrupted, the door of the transportation equipment cabin should be closed immediately to keep the refrigeration system running normally.

(V) Cold chain informationization control

Information network technology is the modern cold chain logistics nervous system, through the support of analyzing system data information service platform, it is easy to realize the strategic cooperative management of all the resource issues of the enterprise, reduce the cost of cold chain logistics, enhance the cultural market economic competition of cold chain logistics enterprises, and improve the level of operation and management ability of cold chain logistics enterprises.

The key technologies of cold chain logistics information system include: information collection and tracking technology, information transmission and exchange technology, and information processing technology.

(VI) Cold chain transportation

Cold chain transportation refers to the transportation that always keeps the transported goods at a certain temperature during the whole transportation process, whether it is loading and unloading, changing the mode of transportation, replacing the packaging equipment, etc. The mode of cold chain transportation can be road transportation, road transportation, or road transportation. The mode of cold chain transportation can be road transportation, waterway transportation, railroad transportation, air transportation, or a variety of modes of transportation composed of a comprehensive mode of transportation.

Cold chain transportation is an important part of cold chain logistics, which is costly and involves complex mobile refrigeration technology and incubator manufacturing technology.

(VII) Cold chain quarantine

Inspection of cold chain quarantine inspection we need to work through the establishment of a standardized and orderly food quarantine inspection of their own, the arrangement of special management system to manage the transportation of large quantities of large distances and high probability of contamination of the means of transport, to do a good job of routine cleaning, disinfection and other sanitary information processing and the implementation of the real-time monitoring of the cold chain logistics and the temperature records related to the work, to ensure that the food appears to be the quality of the development of the state of food in the process of transportation in line with the design requirements to protect the Imported food production safety environment hygiene.

V. Classification

In the current e-commerce cold chain, it can be categorized into two kinds, namely, enterprise whole process cold chain and half process cold chain.

(I) Whole process cold chain

It refers to the temperature control from the warehouse to the sorting base and the final delivery to the consumers, or not in the warehouse, direct temperature control delivery from the origin, generally used in self-built cold chain logistics. The advantage lies in the freshness of goods and the guarantee of logistics and distribution speed.

(ii) Half-way cold chain

Relying on intercity trunk line cold chain transportation, with urban cold storage as the node, with the last kilometer landing, Home Delivery generally extends from the original B2B cold chain business to B2C business. The advantage is that it can be quickly replicated, and the disadvantage is that it is easy to affect the quality of products and services by bouncing between several logistics carriers.

It is reported that the logistics cost of fresh cold chain is 1-2 times that of ordinary commodities, so under the cost pressure, the midway cold chain is more widely used than the whole cold chain. At present, except for a few powerful e-commerce companies that build their own cold chain logistics, all other e-commerce companies are cooperating with third-party logistics. But in the long run, the whole cold chain is the trend in the field of fresh e-commerce.

Sixth, the cold chain logistics problems

Or e-commerce forced logistics companies to develop the old way, but our specific case, is the requirement for higher fresh food e-commerce forced more difficult cold chain logistics company development. High requirements, large investment, difficult to maintain, cold chain distribution has been the international social logistics services industry technology called the field of "Mount Everest".

At present, the development of cold chain logistics in China has the following difficulties.

(i) High cost

At present, the cost of fresh food cold chain logistics is 1-2 times higher than that of ordinary commodities, and the cost of cold chain accounts for 25%-40% of sales. The reduction of cost depends on the scale. If a large scale is formed, the reduction of cold chain cost in the future will directly lead to the reduction of selling price.

(ii) Difficult quality control

At present, there are mainly two types of cold chain distribution, one is transported by refrigeration equipment such as refrigerated trucks, and the other is transported by heat preservation equipment such as heat preservation boxes. The former has the disadvantages of high air-conditioning loss and easy cooling, while the latter has the disadvantages of short preservation time and low intensity.

(C) the lack of industry standards

Fresh commodities are non-standardized products with different requirements for temperature and storage, and the industry has not formed a standard, which makes it difficult to implement. Enterprises using full cold chain logistics operate according to their own standards in order to establish their own brands. The quality of the cold chain cannot be guaranteed uniformly, and there is an urgent need to introduce enforceable industry standards.