RFID in the refrigeration chain

Demand for guaranteeing food safety has been growing for years. A monitoring system would allow the origin and whereabouts of products to be identified quickly and accurately throughout their lifecycle. An effective food monitoring system would also allow the starting point of any crisis to be pinpointed and effected products to be recalled from stores. Suppliers and retailers would be able to guarantee a high level of food safety which would help in restoring diminished consumer confidence. A key issue concerning the effectiveness of monitoring system is which global standard these should be based on. Such a standard should be widely accepted and universal, like the GS1 (formerly EAN.UCC) system: this is recommended by CIMO (European Association of Fresh Produce Importers), CIAA (Confederation of the Food and Drink Industries of EU), EUREPGAP, ECR (Efficient Consumer Response), and CIES (The Food Business Forum). EPC based radio frequency identification (RFID) is an increasingly popular option, as this technology offers complex solutions. One of the special applications of the GS1 system is the monitoring of the refrigeration chain, where a number of pilot project are already in progress. Refrigerated products are a special area of food safety. Products like ice cream need to be kept at a constant temperature. This calls for a system which can monitor and record storage conditions. In the system developed jointly by Állami Nyomda Nyrt. and Unilever Hungary, storage boxes and storage areas are monitored. Boxes are equipped with RFID tags complete with passive temperature sensors (ISO 15693) which record the temperature every 10 minutes. Stores are equipped with programmable RFID readers. The system can be developed further to integrate temperature data into a microbiological model which would allow actual shelf life to be estimated accurately.