Launched in October 2020, our Net Zero Project is aimed at bringing our industry together; to define what we mean by a net zero cold chain; and to work together to identify, plan and transition to a more efficient and lower emission cold chain of the future. As part of the Project, we aim to release five documents, alongside special events and briefings to demonstrate how we can work together with Government and other stakeholders to contribute to the UK’s decarbonisation goals:

  • Part One: Shaping the Cold Chain of the Future: The Road to Net Zero (download below).
  • Part Two: Defining a Net Zero Cold Chain (download below).
  • Part Three: The Journey Towards Emission Free Temperature-controlled Distribution on Road Vehicles (download below).
  • Part Four: The Cold Store of the Future (download below).
  • Part Five: The Future Cold Chain Ecosystem (coming soon).

Icon

SHAPING THE COLD CHAIN OF THE FUTURE: THE ROAD TO NET ZERO (PART ONE - SETTING THE SCENE)

This document is the basis for the Cold Chain Federation's engagement within and outside our industry; to define what we mean by a net zero cold chain and to ask ourselves where the gaps are in our knowledge and where the potential is for collaboration.

Icon

SHAPING THE COLD CHAIN OF THE FUTURE: THE ROAD TO NET ZERO (PART TWO - DEFINING A NET ZERO COLD CHAIN)

Although businesses operating the cold chain are committed to reducing their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other pollutants in line with UK Government targets, we are not as yet in a position to estimate the extent to which we can reach net zero by 2050 and to set our own firm targets. The guide sets out why it is imperative to determine the carbon footprint of the cold chain, and also the Cold Chain Federation’s commitment to not only support members to assess their own emissions, but to also support recently announced academic studies to assess the total emissions from the UK cold chain.

Icon

SHAPING THE COLD CHAIN OF THE FUTURE: THE ROAD TO NET ZERO (PART THREE - THE JOURNEY TO EMISSION FREE TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED REFRIGERATION ON ROAD VEHICLES)

The Journey Towards Emission Free Temperature-controlled Distribution on Road Vehicles is our vision for how transport refrigeration units (TRUs) can transition away from diesel, to emission free alternatives in line with the UK’s decarbonisation and air quality targets. It sets out our view on the technological outlook for TRUs, how operators and manufacturers will adapt to drive down emissions and finally the financial, infrastructural and regulatory support which will be required to enable us to meet our ambitious targets.

Icon

Road to Net Zero Part 4 - Cold Store of 2050

The Cold Store of 2050 is our vision for how temperature-controlled warehouses could evolve to achieve a step change in energy efficiency whilst driving energy transformation in the UK as part of the transition towards a net zero economy by 2050. The report details the technologies which could become more widespread, the barriers to their adoption and how businesses, government and those responsible for the UK energy network will need to collaborate to ensure the opportunities and benefits detailed in this report are achieved.

    What you can expect from our Net Zero Project

    We want all our members to be part of our Net Zero Project. Throughout 2021 and beyond there will be opportunities to get involved and help shape the future of your cold chain. The project aims to give our members the information they need to make an informed choice on how to adapt to the challenge of decarbonising their business. In 2021, you can expect the project to develop in four principal areas:

    CCF Publications

    2021 will see us build on the issues raised in Part One: Setting the Scene, with additional reports focussing on roadmaps for what temperature-controlled storage and distribution will look like in 2050. This document will be released in two parts, the first, The Road to Net Zero Cold Storage released in spring 2021 and the second The Road to Net Zero Temperature-Controlled Distribution following in autumn.

    Cold Chain Conversations

    Launched in 2021, Cold Chain Conversation is a series of debates with eminent cold chain experts discussing the big issues facing the industry in a Question Time style format. Members will be able to listen to the debate live and ask their questions to the panel. On February 10th kicked off the series with a debate on Defining Net Zero – tackling the big questions on what a net zero cold chain might look like and what the key challenges and mandatory obligations might be for individual businesses in the cold chain. Cold Chain Conversations can be found here.

    Insight

    With the UK focussing on a ‘green recovery’ from the Covid-19 pandemic as well as hosting the COP26 climate change conference in November 2021, we can expect a raft of new pledges and climate change policy to be announced in 2022. The Cold Chain Federation will be on hand to help our members understand what these policies mean and how they might impact cold chain operations and the transition to net zero.

    Events

    Through our industry leading events programme, we will be on hand throughout 2021 to update you on the latest information from our Net Zero Project. Cold Chain Connect will provide you with regular briefings on the latest policy announcements and key innovations for energy management and carbon reduction. Our events schedule can be found here.

    INSIGHT PAPERS

    Towards a Net Zero Cold Chain – Setting the Scene – Shane Brennan, Chief Executive, Cold Chain Federation

    Shaping the Future of the Cold Chain: The Road to Net Zero – Tom Southall, Policy Director, Cold Chain Federation

    Adapting to Change: The Uncertainties Facing the UK Cold Chain – Tom Southall, Policy Director, Cold Chain Federation

    Decarbonising and reducing carbon emissions from temperature-controlled distribution – Tom Southall, Policy Director, Cold Chain Federation

    Net Zero Cold Chain – Prof Alan McKinnon, Keuhne Logistics University, Hamburg

    The Engineering Pathway to Net Zero Cold Chain – Dr Rob Lamb, Sales & Marketing Director, Star Refrigeration

    The Changing Face of Food Retailing – Prof Jonathan Reynolds, Academic Director, Oxford Institute of Retail Management

    Strategic Transport Planning – Kirsten Tisdale, Principal, Aricia Logistics Consulting

    Meeting Sustainability Goals – Gavin Parnell, Director, The Supply Chain Consulting Group

    Scope for optimism in times of change – Justin Laney, General Manager Fleet, John Lewis Partnership

    The big picture of vehicle decarbonisation – Brian Robinson, Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership

    Creating a robust blueprint for sustainable and cost-effective food logistics – Prof Toby Peters, Professor in Cold Economy, University of Birmingham

    Zero net carbon – food cold chain challenges – a research perspective – Professor Judith Evans, London South Bank University and Refrigeration Developments and Testing Ltd

    Does “what gets measured” really “get managed”? – John Clark, Director, Star Data Analytics

    Quantifying the Cold Chain – Kevin Mofid, Head of Logistics & Industrial Research, Savills

    PRESENTATIONS

    TRANSITIONING TO THE NET ZERO SUPPLY CHAIN

    THE ENGINEERING ROAD TO NET ZERO

    COLD CHAIN NET ZERO PROJECT

    ADAPTING TO CHANGE IN FOOD RETAILING

    DESIGNING LOGISTICS FOR NET ZERO

    ADAPTING TO CHANGE: THE LOGISTICS CHALLENGE

    THE BIG PICTURE OF VEHICLE DECARBONISATION

    TOWARDS ZERO EMISSION TEMPERATURE CONTROL

    THE FUTURE OF TRAILER TECHNOLOGY

    THE COLD CHAIN ECOSYSTEM

    MARKET SIZING THE UK COLD CHAIN

    ETHOS

    CREATING A ROBUST BLUEPRINT FOR SUSTAINABLE AND COST-EFFECTIVE FOOD LOGISTICS

    COLD CHAIN LIVE WEEK ONE – ALL PRESENTATIONS

    COLD CHAIN LIVE WEEK TWO – ALL PRESENTATIONS

    COLD CHAIN LIVE WEEK THREE – ALL PRESENTATIONS

    COLD CHAIN LIVE WEEK FOUR – ALL PRESENTATIONS

    FURTHER READING

    Net Zero: The UK’s contribution to stopping global warming (CCC, 2019)

    Reducing UK emissions: 2020 Progress Report to Parliament (CCC, 2020)

    Doing Cold Smarter (University of Birmingham, 2015)

    Climate Change Agreements scheme extension and reforms for any future scheme (BEIS, 2020)

    Rewiring Britain for a net zero future: (Ofgem, 2020)

    National Food Strategy (2020)

    Last Mile urban freight in the UK: How and why is it changing? (Foresight: Government Office for Science, 2019)

    Refrigerated warehouses as intelligent hubs to integrate renewable energy in industrial food refrigeration and to enhance power grid sustainability (LSBU Journal Article, Fikiin et al. 2017)

    Energy Efficiency in Cold Stores: a practical guide (Cold Chain Federation, 2020)

    Decarbonising Transport: Setting the Scene (Department for Transport, 2020)

    Decarbonising road freight (Centre for Sustainable Road Freight, 2019)

    White Paper: Decarbonising the UK’s Long-Haul Road Freight at Minimum Economic Cost (Centre for Sustainable Road Freight, 2020)

    Sustainable Refrigerated Road Transport – Investigating the Scale of Carbon Emissions from Direct- Drive Last Mile Refrigerated Vehicles (LSBU: Judith Evans et al. 2019)

    The Future of UK supply chains in a disrupted world: Brexit and Covid-19 (LSE Blog, 2020)

    UK Cold Chain Logistics Market by End User: Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2019-2026 (Allied Market Research, 2019)

    UK Cold Storage Sector (Cold Chain Federation, 2020)

    For more information about the Cold Chain Net Zero Project contact tom@coldchainfed.org.uk