When it comes to freight, food, and beverages can be two of the more delicate types of cargo to handle. Food that’s not pre-packaged, such as fruit, or vegetables, are obviously very delicate, and need to be protected from bruising, which can accelerate the rotting process. But even beverages, which may come in metal or glass containers, are not invulnerable, just because they are less prone to physical damage.
As with food, beverages can be affected by changes in temperature, and this can hurt this cargo in a number of ways.
It’s A Chemical Reaction
As with food, beverages are vulnerable to changes in temperature as a simple process of chemistry. Cooking, after all, is simply a very specific kind of chemistry, mixing different substances together, and then applying heat—or cold—to invoke the desired chemical reaction. Once a food or beverage is completed, however, that doesn’t mean that it’s now immune to further chemical changes due to the application of different temperatures.
In the case of wine, for example, heat can be disastrous. Wine requires cool, dry conditions in order to preserve the flavor. Any sustained exposure to high temperature can change the fluid temperature of the wine, and if this occurs over a long enough period of time, the wine loses its flavor and eventually becomes sour, wasted liquid, with no more culinary value.
Carbonated beverages, on the other hand, don’t like the cold. Due to the carbon dioxide that is put into these drinks as part of the carbonation process, drinks like soda pop have a specific reaction to lower temperatures. Freezing, of course, causes fluids to expand when they solidify, so this already a concern with beverages in cans, bottles, or other rigid containers. However, when you throw carbonation into the mix, that lower temperature interacts with, and adds pressure to CO2. If isolated pockets of CO2 in a beverage receive enough pressure from cold, they can explode.
The Sustainable Solution
Temperature control to protect beverages doesn’t have to be left strictly in the hands more expensive reefer units. Sustainable temperature protection for beverages is possible through the judicious use of specific pallet covers, like the SureTemp leasing system. This is a cost-effective, environmentally friendly alternative to powered reefer units, as pallet covers neither require power, nor emit CO2 themselves.
On the other hand, these pallet covers can last for years, stabilizing temperatures and protecting beverages from unwanted temperature variance. Thanks to leasing programs, the covers can even be maintained by the providers, taking another burden off the shoulders of logistics businesses. And when it comes time to “retire” pallet covers after years of use, wear, and tear, they can be recycled by the providers, rather than disposed of, making for a much more economical and environmentally friendly solution.
Beverages need a lot of protection to ensure they’re still viable when they arrive at their destination. SureTemp pallet covers can be an important part of that protection process that is both sustainable and cost-effective.
