Running on Ice: How cold can you go?

Your latest info on all things cold chain

Hello, and welcome to the coolest community in freight! Here you’ll find the latest information on warehouse news, tech developments and all things reefer madness-related. I’m your controller of the thermostat, Mary O’Connell. Thanks for having me!

All thawed out

As someone who has often wondered how an ultra-cold freezer gets that way, turns out the answer is easier than I thought. Liquid helium ballast refrigeration is the answer. Helium, when brought down to only a few degrees above zero, remains in its liquid phase, which provides an efficient cooling method with little chance for heat to enter the system. 

With the rise in vaccine technology that relies on the ultra-cold properties, like we saw in some of the COVID-19 vaccines, this type of cooling will become more popular and necessary. One of the most common applications of liquid helium refrigeration is cryogenic preservation. Not quite like Austin Powers, this type of cooling is most commonly used in scientific and medical research. 

Arguably the coolest application of this type of freezing is related to space exploration. When scientists have the ability to replicate ultra-cold conditions in space here on Earth, it allows for them to test theories and develop plans for astronauts and the future of space exploration. 

Temperature Checks 

(Photo: Parkside)

A new way of packaging frozen goods has hit the market. Parkside has developed a freezer-proof recyclable paper packaging solution. According to a Food Processing article, “The pack uses Parkside’s Recoflex material and was developed for the frozen food supermarket range of frozen seafood. The paper pack is fully functional, totally recyclable and freezer-proof.” 

The article goes on to say, “To create the pack, the paper-based laminate Recoflex material was further enhanced using a water-based coating that acts as a moisture and grease barrier. It also prevents ice crystals from forming on the pack, preserving the integrity of the moisture and grease barrier through the supply chain.”

The new product is up for an Innovation Excellence Award from The Stationers’ Co. for product design. The Stationers awards celebrate innovation excellence in communications, content and print, product design, and performance and quality. 

 Food and drugs

(Image: Kellogg Co.)

The king of breakfast cereals, Kellogg’s, is facing some tough decisions in the coming months. Faced with a good problem potentially becoming a bad one, The Kellogg Company has grown so massive that it’s now a struggle to keep up with the various different industry verticals such as cereal, snacks, noodles and plant-based options. 

Earlier this month the CPG giant filed a Form 10 with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which basically registers a class of securities for potential trading. In a nutshell, Kellogg is looking to spin off some of its verticals into their own companies to continue the success. The split has been in talks for the last year but it seems that it has finally come to fruition in the form of WK Kellogg. WK Kellogg will be the home of cereals in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean. 

Cold chain lanes

SONAR Ticker: ROTVI.CAE, ROTRI.CAE

This week’s SONAR market is Columbia, South Carolina. Outbound tender rejections are up 678 basis points week over week for an overall rate of 6.78% rejections. Typically when rejection rates get close to 7%, inflated spot rates are in the market. Spot rates might be lower now than they were at the beginning of the month, but rates are still going to be higher than last week. Capacity shouldn’t be too hard to come by as volumes are trending upward and outbound tender rejections are on the decline. Carrier compliance leaves a little to be desired as the OTRI in Columbia is higher than the national average of 4.19%.

Is SONAR for you? Check it out with a demo!

Shelf life

Snoop Dogg brings his NFT into real life with new ice cream line available in select Walmart stores

Vizient taps DHL Supply Chain for healthcare logistics services

Konscious Foods launches first ever plant-based frozen ‘raw’ seafood in Whole Foods

Lineage Logistics publishes first sustainability report

Amazon’s Whole Foods to triple shelf space for vertical farmer Bowery

Wanna chat in the cooler? Shoot me an email with comments, questions or story ideas at moconnell@freightwaves.com.

See you on the internet.

Mary

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Source: freightwaves - Running on Ice: How cold can you go?
Editor: Mary O'Connell