Solar Cold Chain Optimization Research – An Integrated Multidisciplinary Project Agenda

Cold supply chain facilities are essential to the producers and suppliers of perishable commodities especially for farmers and fisheries to protect their agricultural and fish products for a long period during transportation from origin to destination. The traditional ‘Solution’ has been put in place for small Cold Storage facilities connected to the Grid or running from Diesel Generators – these though are dependent on stable electricity and in the case of Diesel powered it is expensive to maintain and run and have an environmental impact. Solar Powered Cold Chain through combined developments in battery technology, can provide uninterrupted Cold Storage and Cold Chain solutions that are economic to operate, environmentally friendly, and able to be located in rural places where electricity supplies cannot be relied on. It is observed that there is a research gap in practical and applied research in the area of fully integrated Solar Cold Chains. The research proposal highlights the opportunities associated with Solar Powered Cold Chain, particularly the positive economic impact that can deliver to the actual farmers and fishermen that grow and catch foodstuffs – enabling larger amounts of income to be earned and retained in the rural economies. The research provides the idea of adopting and managing Solar Cold Chain facilities for perishable commodities like farming and fisheries in developing countries through its systematic analysis using ABCD framework