Electricity usage in the Australian cold chain Sm Estrada-Flores and Gm Platt The CSIRO Energy Transformed Flagship is working towards developing an intelligent cool room controller that provides refrigerated conditions that are responsive to the demands of the National Electricity Market, without compromising food quality and safety. In collaboration with the Food Futures Flagship, an analysis of the food cold chain to detect the most electricity intensive operations was undertaken. This paper presents the results of this investigation, which encompassed five sectors of the Australian cold chain, from farmgate to consumption. The decreasing order of electricity use, was: (1) domestic refrigeration in the consumer's household; (2) retail refrigeration; (3) refrigerated distribution (warehousing); (4) cooling of raw materials in the primary industries; and (5) chilling and freezing of products during the secondary processing stage. Electricity consumption increases dramatically towards the final stages of the value chain. Therefore, energy saving technologies that target retail and domestic refrigeration are likely to maximise impact in terms of national electricity expenditure. Refrigeration consumes about 15% of all electricity consumed worldwide (Coulomb 2005). This consumption affects the cost-effectiveness of the cold chain, and also contributes to global warming. In regards to the latter, direct emissions through leakage and disposal ofrefrigerants to the atmosphere has received significant attention by policy makers. However, indirect emissions, created by the production of the energy needed to operate the refrigerating plants, represents about 80% of the total"contribution of the refrigeration sector to global warming (UR 2006). Furthermore, the summary of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IpeC 2007) in regards to Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, states than warmer climatic conditions are likely to increase the need for cooling. As production from agriculture and forestry is projected to decline over much of the southern hemisphere by 2030 (IPCC '2007), the Australian value chain of perishables is likely to undergo significant transformations, and preservation throughout the chain may become even more important than it is now. Environmental concerns will affect end-users of electricity. For example, a recent report has suggested that with carbon pricing strategies in place, energy prices for industrial customers may increase by up to 50% by the year 2050 (Reedman 2007). Media has also focused its attention on a perceived electricity supply problem in parts of Australia, and indeed worldwide. Ageing network infrastructure, a growing peak electricity demand from loads such as air-conditioners, and the ever increasing base-load energy consumption have contributed to the perception that electricity generation and distribution systems are unable to cope with the demand placed on them. A traditional solution to such issues has been to build more supply infrastructure, but there is an increasing interest in finding alternate solutions to these problems. For example, consider the peak-load growth issue: addressing this through supply-side augmentation is an incredibly inefficient approach. While peak loads can be double the average base load on a network, they often occur for only a few days per year. In addition to supply and distribution issues, Australia trades electricity in a relatively volatile energy market, where the price for a unit of electricity can vary from $10 to $10 000 in the same day.
Alternative solutions include demand-side measures, where electricity consumers are encouraged to have much greater participation on how and when they consume electricity. As one example of such activity, a recent report suggested that all electricity customers be presented with time-varying price signals that are representative of electricity market prices, and that this occurs within the next five to ten years (Council of Australian Governments' Independent Review of Electricity Market Directions 2002). Generally, such measures are designed to encourage end-use energy efficiency measures, and help control peak loads in electricity networks. Additionally, businesses that are able to shift the timing of electricity intensive operations with significant thermal mass embodied in their operation, may be rewarded financially. This benefit has a flow-on effect to electricity retailers and network operators. A condition is that consumers must actively manage their electricity consumption throughout the full operating time of the refrigeration plants involved. CSIRO is currently working on technologies that optimise the energy consumption of electrical loads in a variety of applications. In refrigeration systems, this objective must be balanced with the needs of (a) minimising the impact on the quality and safety of the foods during the supply chain and (b) meeting the local constraints of the end operation. As part of our work in this area, a study of the most energy intensive operations and products in the food industry was undertaken (Estrada-Flores 2007). The effect of electricity management strategies on the quality of chilled and frozen products was also investigated. However, this paper deals mostly with the quantification of electricity expenditure in the cold chain. A caveat of this paper is the exclusion of refrigerated transport. Transport has been identified as a major energy-spending activity (AFGC 2003) and it is estimated that it contributes to emissions of about 0.2 kg CO 2 'per kg of product transported. These environmental concerns, which have led to concepts such as "Food Miles", undoubtedly deserve a detailed analysis of the life-cycle of Australian food exports. However, this paper deals exclusively with electricity and
Dr Silvia Estrada-Flores is with Food Science Australia) PO Box 52) North Ryde NSW 1670 and Dr Glenn Platt is with CSIRO Division of Energy Iechnology) PO Box 330) Newcastle) NSW 2300. Email
[email protected]. 382
Food Australia 59 (8) - August, 2007
cooling to 4°C (AS 1187, Standards Australia 1996) is achieved by mechanical refrigeration. It was further assumed that 20% of the production is fully cooled with mechanical refrigeration from 35 to 4°C. 5. An extra 20% was added to all product heat loads to account for other heat loads (eg building transmission, efficiency factors and miscellaneous). 6. For seafood, it was assumed that precooling is undertaken by means of ice, either after capture in the fishing vessel or at the processing plant. It was assumed that a ratio of 0.5 kg ice per 1 kg of product was required for precooling (Magnussen 1993), which covers both fish cooling and energy losses. The average electricity required to manufacture the ice was based on an estimate of 50 to 60 kWh per tonne ice (UNEP 2000). No considerations regarding efficiency of the refrigeration systems were used, as this analysis was performed to obtain a broad picture of the most energyconsuming commodities, based on production figures. Figure 2 presents the estimated Australian primary production electricity usage (455.3 GWh per year). Milk cooling is the most electricity-intensive activity of those analysed here (232 GWh per year). Meat chilling after slaughter, including pig and poultry production,
lIVESTOCKJFISH/CROP
uses about 138 GWh/year. Precooling of horticultural products (77 GWh/year) occupies third place. A similar preliminary analysis conducted by FRPERC (2006) in the UK shows that the British milk, meat and seafood industries spend 240, 60 and 6 GWh per year, respectively. The Australian energy footprint reflects the significant impact of dairy, meat and horticultural primary production, and a lesser impact of the seafood sector on the total energy usage.
Chilling and freezing during secondary processing In this category, a variety of products were considered including chilled processed meats; frozen processed red meat; chilled fish/seafood; frozen processed poultry; chilled smoked fish; frozen processed fish/seafood; chilled pizza; frozen processed vegetables; chilled soup and pasta; frozen meat substitutes; chilled processed food; frozen processed potatoes; wine and beer; frozen bakery and dessert products (including ice cream); drinking milk; frozen ready to eat and pizza meals; and other dairy (cheese, butter) (Figure 3). These products represented the most manufactured chilled and frozen products in Australia during 20042005.
PRIMARY PROCESSING
Production during 2003..2004MILK, MEAT AND SEAFOOD
FRUITS AND VEGETABlES* Apples Apricots Asparagus Avocado Bananas Beans
255 11
kt kt kt
10
kt kt
42 257 31 22 52
kt
Berries kt Broccoli kt Cabbage kt Capsicumlchi/ii. kt Carrots kt Cauliflower kt Cherries kt Kiwifruit kt Lemonslfimes/~kt Lettuce kt
o
56 303 78 8 3 41
127
97 37
Mandarins kt Mangoes kt Melons kt Mushrooms kt Nashi kt Nectarines kt Onions kt Oranges kt Peaches kt Pears kt PineapplesBan kt Plums kt Potatos kt Tableanddriedr. kt Tomatoes kt winegrapes kt
204
46
3 25 233
Milk
ML
10125
BeeflveaJ Mutton Lamb
kt kt
2162 237
kt kt
354 388
kt
792
pig poultry
410
74 139 110
24 1310
"Note: only 50% of the total theoretical cooling required was used for comparison
Tuna
kt
Other fish
kt
12 132
Prawns Rock lobster
kt
26 18 6
198
Abalone
kt kt
474 1895
Scallops
kt
10
Oysters
kt
13
PRECOOLING NEEDS Ice/fish 2%
Fruit & vegetables
17% Product category Fruit & vegetables
Mill< Meat Ice/fish
GWhperyear
77.1 232.0 138.4 7.8
TOTAL: 455.3 GWhlyear
\
1
Milk 51%
Figure 2. Theoretical precooling needs in the production and primary processing sectors. 384
Food Australia 59 (8) - August, 2007
The most significant exports in terms of value and volume were also considered in this analysis. Given that 95% of the total value of Australian food exports is represented by bulk and minimally processed products, three major exports in this category were chosen: chilled and frozen meat, fresh milk, cheese and butter and selected horticultural exports. The calculation of energy requirements for the chilled food component was similar to the precooling case. For beer, cooling electricity consumption was estimated to be 0.003 kWh/L (Hackensellner 2000, ITR 2002). In the case of winemaking, a benchmark of 0.07 kW/L for must cooling was used as a basis to calculate total electricity consumption (ITR 2003).
To calculate the electricity used during freezing, an energy usage benchmark of 133 kWhltonne for blast freezing was used (Werner & others 2006). The total electricity usage for freezing (t'
HIGH ENERGY USAGE
lOW ENERGY USAGE
m i-
~ 3,000
w
2,000
Refrigerated
1,000
o -+~......~......J"'w,~.....~~~~4I>----.........
1"""'-...
300.0
10,000
5,000
°
•
storage
Domestic Chming
----,----C.-.--r----r-----r----r----~----$_....,
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
35,000
40,000
45,000
50,000
Value $m
SECTOR I
2500
• Primary dairy
• Primary meat • Wine & beer
PrimaryF&V
• Meat export (frozen & chiUed)
+ freezing
50.0
Dairy export
* I
+»l--
Primary seafood
--,------r----r----..-----r-----r----.--.-------,-----~--~
0.0
o
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
12,000
14,000
16,000
18,000
20,000
Va~ue$m
Figure 7. Chart identifying the opportunities for energy saving strategies as a function of the value of food products in each quadrant. Food Australia 59 (8) - August, 2007 389
81 Hamilton, C, Denniss, R & Baker, D. 2005. Wasteful consumption in Australia. Discussion Paper Number 77. The Australia Institute. Hilton, G. 2006. General Manager of Oxford Cold Storage. Personal communication. Howells, H. 2004. Northern Territory Tropical Fruits Industry - Market Opportunities. Report to RIRDC. IIR. 2006. International Institute of Refrigeration Report Card on refrigeration sector for the UN Commission on Sustainable Development. Downloaded from: www.iifiir.org/en/notes.php?rub=2. ITR. 2002. Pasteurisation options for breweries. Industry Tourism ResourcesAustralia. Commonwealth of Australia. ITR. 2003. A guide to energy efficiency innovation in Australian wineries. Industry Tourism Resources Australia. Commonwealth of Australia. IARW 2006. International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses information. Downloaded from: http://irta.org/hq/aboutus/capacity3 . asp. IPCC. 2007. Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Summary for Policymakers. Working Group II Contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Downloaded from www. ipcc.ch. James, SJ. 2003. Developments in domestic refrigeration and consumer attitudes. Bull IIR No 5. MacAulay, T, Niksic, 1\,.. & Wright, V. 1990 Food and ..fibre consumption. In Williams DB (ed). Agriculture in the Australian Economy. Sydney University Press, Melbourne: 26686. Magnussen, OM. 1993. Energy consumption in the cold chain. Proc. IIR Comm. Bl, B2, Dl, D2/3. Cold chain refrigeration equipment by design :171-178. Mark Ellis & Associates. 2000. Remote Commercial Refrigeration. Australian Greenhouse Office. National Appliance and Equipment Energy Efficiency Committee. National Milk Harvesting Centre. 2006. How effective is your plate cooler? Cowtime Quick Note 4.6. Reedman, L. 2007. The Impact of Carbon Pricing and Other Targeted Policies on the Uptake of Distributed Generation: Preliminary Scenario Results for Australia. 30th Con£. Int. Assoc Energy Economics, New Zealand. Standards Australia. 1996. AS 11871996. Farm milk cooling and storage systems. UNEP. 2000. Cleaner Production Assessment in Fish Processing:39 USDA. 2006. Cold Storage Annual Summary. National Agricultural Statistics Service. Werner, SRL, Vaino, F, Merts, I & Cleland, DJ. 2006. Energy use by the New Zealand cold storage industry. Proc. IIR-IRHACE Conf. Auckland: 313-320. D
390
Food Australia 59 (8) - August, 2007
SlOP PRESS ..... FoUc acid fortification approved An extraordinary meeting of the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council was held in Canberra on 22 June, chaired by Senator Brett Mason, Parliamentary Secretary to the Australian Government Minister for Health and Ageing. The Ministerial Council comprises Ministers responsible for food issues in Australia and New Zealand. At the meeting, the Ministerial Council considered Food Standards Australia New Zealand's (FSANZ) first review report on the draft standard for the mandatory fortification of food with folic acid.
Mandatory fortification with folic acid At their meeting on 4 May 2007, Ministers agreed to meet during June 2007 to consider FSANZ's findings from the first review of the mandatory fortification of food with folic acid standard required by the Ministerial Council and make a decision on the matter (see Food Aust. 59(7): 245, July 2007. On 22 June, Food Ministers affirmed the draft standard on the mandatory fortification of food with folic acid for inclusion in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The draft standard requires the mandatory addition of folic acid to wheat flour for bread-making within the prescribed range of 200-300 micrograms per 100 grams of flour. This level of fortification is expected to prevent between 11 and 49 neural tube defects in the 300-350 affected pregnancies in Australia each year when combined with existing voluntary fortification permissions and current levels of supplement usage. In New Zealand, this level of fortification is expected to prevent between 4-14 neural tube defects each year. There is a transition period of two years for the new standard. Neural tube defects are severe birth defects that are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality as well as hardship for carers and families. Fortifying food with folic acid has been adopted in a number of countries to reduce the prevalence of these birth defects. In adopting the new standard the Ministerial Council has exempted wheat flour for bread-making represented as organic. The Ministerial Council recognises the importance of public health and safety in adopting the new standard. An extensive monitoring system is being finalised to determine the effects of mandatory folic acid fortification. It was also agreed that a comprehensive and independent review of mandatory fortification with folic acid will be initiated two years after implementation of the standard. The review will consider health impacts and the effectiveness of the initiative, the actual cost impacts on the food industry and the adequacy of the monitoring framework. D
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