The long awaited report on the extent of Australia's food waste as it travels through the cold chain, prepared by the Expert Group, has just been released by its sponsors, the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment and Refrigerants Australia.

While quantifying the extent and the costs of food waste in the cold chain, it also lists opportunities for improvement.

Estimates of food waste attributable to breaks and deficiencies in the cold food chain are provided for the first time. Preliminary and conservative estimates put the cost of food waste within the cold food chain at $3.8 billion at farm gate values.

Temperature abuse is cited as one of the main reasons for food wastage, with the greatest risks for perishable food occurring during transportation and handling between mobile and stationary refrigeration points. There are sometimes huge temperature variations between truck or trailer, loading docks and storage facilities.

The AFCCC is very familiar with the causes of food wastage in the cold chain, and is working on a number of fronts to improve Australia's cold chain processes and standards. It is currently working towards a universally adopted code to help all cold chain practitioners lift their compliance record.

READ A STUDY OF WASTE IN THE COLD FOOD CHAIN AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT