Each day, millions of cases of food product are delivered to restaurants, schools, hospitals, and other food service establishments. Transporting these food products safely requires optimal temperature in the cold chain and elaborate monitoring. If the temperature falls above or below the optimal range, costly spoilage can occur. Fortunately, our Lightning Real-time temperature recorders provide online access to current temperature and location data while perishable shipments are in-transit.
How Temperature Monitoring is Reducing Food Waste
According to a report of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted per year, leaving 1 billion people in the world malnourished. The USDA has identified which food products are considered high risk for temperature-related hazards. These foods include mackerel, Ahi, ground meats /uncooked sausages, and others. Although the USDA enforces temperature monitoring on these products, it’s wise to monitor in-transit temperatures for virtually all perishable food products for food safety and quality. If the time-to-result indicates the temperature has exceeded safe limits, the best practice is to refuse the shipment and discard the product.
Lightning Real-Time Temperature Monitoring
Cargo Data Corporation’s new Lightning Real-Time device provides a nearly fool-proof system to ensure that vital temperature data is collected and automatically archived. This allows the devices to regularly report temperature data to the cloud while the truck/trailer is in-transit. Our system issues alert texts and emails if shipment temperatures exceed safe limits while in-transit. Since the device sends data to the cloud during the entire trip, there is no longer a need for personnel to physically retrieve and download the instrument upon arrival. This new technology is viewed as being more “foolproof” than conventional devices that must be downloaded.
Contact Our Temperature Monitoring Program Specialists
Our hands-off method for regulator compliance is the optimal option for large scale food handlers. The alert system can further provide real-time warning of unsafe conditions, and the collected location data can assist in determining where a load was at a given time. If you have additional questions, contact Cargo Data Corporation’s knowledgeable in-transit temperature monitoring program specialists today at 800-338-8134.