Safe and performing supply-chain in food industry
The research network FORFood views the complete value added chain of food production, from the industrial processing, up to the distribution to the customer. It consists of 6 research groups of Bavarian universities and institutes as well as a variety of industrial partners.
The object of the network are an increase of quality and efficiency at the production and distribution of food by ideal use of ressources.
The fields health, convencience and taste are the most important aspects in food industry. Consumers want healthy, easy to handle food, which are customized. At the same time producer have to reduce their costs, to sell their products on the market.
Therefore the reasearch projects focuses on a resource smoothing, high-quality production and packaging of food. The complete value added chain of food production, up to packaging, as well as the single processes of manufacturing are analysed. An increase of security and a lower use of raw materials are the purpose for the developement of strategies and methods of an innovative, traceable food production. Due to the development of ecological, flexible and adaptive solutions for food packaging the process chain at the food manufacturer is completed abd therefore the basis of a maximal exhausting of optimisation potential concerning quality and use of ressoruces are made.
The reasearch network FORFood is supported by the Bavarian Research foundation.
Within the network a variety of researching institues as well as a multiplicity of industrial companies are working together in 6 sub-projects and reasearch the ressource smoothing methods and prodcuts for food production and execution.
The reasearch project FORFood is put together out of the following sub-projects (SP):
SP 1: Input of high-frequency heating-method for quick pasteurisation or sterilisation
SP 2: Automated food production in batch size 1
SP 3: Flexibilisation of packaging construction in food industry
SP 4: Economisation of handling and processing of fruit and vegetable
SP 5: Sustainability of packaging of fresh products
SP 6: Safe supply chain by an intelligent container
Within the research network DYNAMIC System supported in the sub-peoject 6 - Safe supply chain by an intelligent container.
The requirements of safety and quality are especially in food industry very high. The EU-regulation (EG) Nr. 178/2002 determines therefore the continuous traceability of food. Every participant of the supply-chain has to fulfil the documentation on the principle “one step up – one step down”.
In case the goods should not only be traced, but also be called back efficiently, a supply-chain comprehensive, continuous traceability of commodity flows with batch splitting is the requirement for an efficient execution.
This traceability requires the evaluation and saving of data along the whole supply chain, and fast possibilities for access and analysis.
Achievement
• Saving quality of food by sensor-based control of environmental conditions
• Increasing the efficiency of processes within the supply chain
• Raising the transparency of food supply chain
• Simplification of traceability of food
Solution
These aims should be achieved by an intelligent container and the needed infrastructure. Additionally the continuous commodity flow chain of food logistics will be researched.
Summary
The development of an integrated system, that should enable an extensive quality saving and traceability on the one hand and on the other hand that increases the efficiency of logistic processes.
To fulfill these requirements, an intelligent container and the needed infrastructure will be developed. DYNAMIC Systems supported this project providing in the development of transponders.