SolarX Works attend the 2020 Egypt Cold Chain Exhibition

A few weeks ago, we had the opportunity to attend and speak at the Egypt Cold Chain Exhibition in Cairo, Egypt. This was an amazing opportunity and we met some great people and businesses. Egypt as a country understands the importance of a proper cold chain, as they have stated that as much as 35% of food goes bad that is farmed in their fields.

Blake and I spoke on the state of solar power in the cold chain. We discussed how large warehouses are currently leveraging solar as a way to offset traditional energy sources by placing panels on the roofs of their buildings. Although this has typically required subsidies in the past to make business sense, with the price of power steadily increasing and the cost of solar decreasing, it is making more and more business sense every day.

In addition to using solar at the warehouse level, there is a lot of traction in the use of solar for smaller-scale refrigeration. This is where we come in and our xCOLD solution can play an important role in reducing food waste. We refer to these applications as first mile, last mile, and micro distribution.

First mile, also known as pre-cooling, is the use of refrigeration to bring produce down to proper storage temp shortly after harvest. This not only reduces the amount of spoilage that occurs during transport but also reduces the energy needed to cool the product once it reaches the cold storage warehouse. Our xCOLD unit is a perfect solution for this type of application. The xCOLD’s modular, portable design allows it to be moved from place to place to provide cooling to multiple harvests.

To paint a better picture, imagine a standard 20 or 40 foot shipping container on a trailer, with solar panels mounted to the roof and the xCOLD unit mounted to the container. As tomatoes are being harvested, they are placed in boxes and then placed inside the container, which is producing cold temperatures down to -17° F. As the harvesting moves across the field, the container is towed along to provide easy access to continue to cool tomatoes as they are harvested. Once the harvest on this field is completed, the container can then be moved to the next field or be transported to the cold storage for more permanent storage. In many places throughout the world, improper temperature-controlled storage post-harvest results in significant product loss—sometimes up to 50%. By leveraging the xCOLD in the scenario described above, post-harvest loss could be significantly reduced, resulting in more food reaching the market and increased income for the local farmers.

Last mile refers to refrigeration just prior to being purchased by the consumer. Typically this is done at a grocery store or market. At the grocery store, a dollar saved equates to $35 in increase sales. To translate, this means that by just saving $1 (let’s say by reducing energy for refrigeration), it is equivalent to increasing the sales at the market or grocery store by $35. This shows how thin the margins are an how much of an impact cutting costs are at the last mile. By installing the xCOLD at this point to replace the traditional refrigeration system, the grocery store or market would reduce their electricity costs and therefore increase their margin significantly.

The last (but not least) use case we touched on during our presentation was around the concept of micro-distribution. This refers to setting up small solar-powered refrigeration systems (say attached to a walk-in cooler or shipping container) in communities throughout a country’s distribution network and allowing local people to manage and sell refrigeration as a service. When local farmers harvest their goods, they can then bring them to this collection point where it is handled and stored by the people in charge for a small fee. When the produce is ready to be transported and sold, it is removed from the storage facility and shipped on its way. This concept is already taking shape in many emerging markets, such as Nigeria—for products such as tomatoes and fish. What is so fantastic about this idea is that not only does it reduce waste and improve the profitability for the farmers, it also provides income for the locals who run the micro-distribution center.

As we wrapped up the expo, we were very pleased by the interest and reception by the people who attended. We feel that Egypt sees great value in products like the xCOLD and other solar-powered refrigeration systems and that these products can help meet their goals of reducing post-harvest waste.

We look forward to heading back in the near future!

Donald McGraw, COO