Monitor the cold chain
Ensuring food safety
Perishable foods are highly sensitive to temperature fluctuations. Fruit and vegetables, for example, ripen too quickly and may not survive transport to the supermarket if stored too warmly. In meat and dairy products, elevated temperatures encourage bacterial growth, which can lead to serious health risks.
For this reason, the cold chain must remain unbroken at all times — something that can only be guaranteed through continuous monitoring. Such monitoring helps identify weak points that must be eliminated immediately. Special attention should be given to areas where ambient temperatures are prone to fluctuation due to external factors: windows, doors, transport vehicles, and containers must all be reliably temperature-resistant.
Testo measuring instruments provide the assurance that the cold chain for foodstuffs is consistently maintained.
The following devices are available for this purpose:
Thermometer for monitoring temperatures
Hygrometer for monitoring humidity
Data logger for storing and evaluating the measured values
Transport logger for logistics
Measuring devices for the cold chain
Storing and transporting food safely
Almost all countries must adhere to the HACCP concept, which stands for an internationally binding quality concept designed to ensure the safety of food. These guidelines also deal with the storage and transportation of food as well as the temperature to be maintained, which is not only relevant to safety but also influences the quality of the products. Food inspectors are responsible for checking the cold chain and ensuring that it has been fully maintained. They must repeatedly check the temperatures in the warehouse and during transportation and document the data. This provides proof of the cold chain and compliance with it.
This is a preventative measure, as food whose cold chain has been interrupted once will spoil. The interruption and its effects can no longer be reversed. It is important that critical control points are particularly noticed and inspected. Every company that deals with food must therefore have a self-monitoring system that scrutinizes critical points in advance. Within the control system, there are fixed limit values that must be adhered to and monitored.
This is where the measuring instruments from Testo come into play. Thermometers and hygrometers ensure consistent monitoring of the cold chain and can even be operated wirelessly via smartphone.
Examples of such measuring instruments are:
Insertion thermometer
Infrared thermometer
Data logger
Hygrometer
Transportation of food: Do not interrupt the cold chain
During transportation, meat, vegetables and fruit are removed from their previous storage location and placed in containers, crates or nets. They are loaded onto the transporter and run the risk of the cold chain being interrupted. It is also not only during loading that the cold chain can break. The transport vehicle's refrigeration unit can fail, which would result in the entire delivery spoiling. It is therefore essential that the transport driver receives immediate notification of a malfunction as soon as it becomes apparent. If the temperatures in the transport area rise, action must be taken before critical limits are exceeded. Temperature data loggers make food transportation safer and ensure an unbroken cold chain thanks to immediate countermeasures in the event of a fault or error.
Downloads: Measuring methods and devices for the cold chain
Overview: The most important measurement methods
to download
Brochure: Measuring technology cold chain
to download