ACR Journal

December 2022 | January 2023 When it comes to ending world hunger, there is much work to be done. The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations estimates that 828 million people were a ected by hunger in 2021, an increase of 46 million from the previous year and 150 million since 2019. You can blame the usual suspects for worsening conditions: COVID-19 and its impact on the supply chain; inflation, which has caused the agriculture price index to spike 19% since 2021; and global warming and its severe e ect on agricultural production. Less obvious – but just as consequential – is the enormous impact of loss and waste on the global food supply. Food loss and waste are serious problems that not only a ect the world’s ability to feed the hungry, but squander all the water, land, energy, labour and capital dedicated to producing, transporting and storing food that never gets eaten. REFRIGERANTS 24 By Jeff Dormo, vice president and general manager, Fluorine Products, Honeywell Advanced Materials. Key role of low GWP refrigerants in food cold chain What is the impact of the food loss and waste problem? The United Nations has declared September 29 International Day of Awareness on Food Loss and Waste Reduction. According to the he United Nations, about 14% of food produced is lost between harvest and retail, and 17% of total food production is wasted. The food supply chain requires a reliable and uninterrupted series of refrigerated production, storage, transportation and distribution activities. Modern refrigeration technologies create an e cient cold chain to ensure a safe supply of fresh and frozen foods to consumers worldwide, including in regions a ected by food insecurity. We also need to consider ways to reduce the environmental impact of the cold chain. One way to do that is by replacing high- global-warming-potential (GWP) refrigerants with reduced-impact alternatives. Honeywell’s Solstice portfolio of ready- now low-GWP hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) refrigerants perform as well or better than previous-generation products and create a much smaller environmental footprint. Reducing emissions across the food cold chain Growing fruits and vegetables in the desert is not an easy proposition. But a new generation of farmers are using climate-controlled greenhouses to manage temperature, light, humidity and water usage to create indoor oases where plants can thrive in ideal growing conditions. Volume 9 No.1