The rising cost of wholesale gas and electricity has put a strain on many sectors across the UK and other parts of the world, as we are facing an unprecedented rise in prices. So, how can IoT be used to reduce energy consumption in the food industry?
The UK food sector is now facing uncertain energy import supply, which is negatively affecting the manufacturing production and processes. The uplift in these costs is then passed to the consumer, adding additional strain to the rising cost of living.
From farm to grocery store shelf, energy and fuel are used at every step as our food moves through the supply chain, the way we grow, transport, prepare, process and package, consumes around 30% of the world’s available energy. Around 70% of this occurs after the farm. The food processing industry requires energy for heating, cooling, and electricity. The total energy demand for food processing is around three times the direct energy consumed after the farm. In addition, energy in packaging can be relatively energy-intensive due to the use of plastics and highly intensive operations.
Food production is heavily dependent on fossil fuels, which significantly contribute to Greenhouse gas emissions. In the UK, the food processing industry is the largest single manufacturing sector, It is also the fourth largest industrial energy user.
While we cannot control the current energy market, we can provide you with the insights to give you the information you need on how to reduce your carbon footprint while reducing energy costs, and improving the efficiency of food and beverage production and processing across your organisation.
Two of the biggest ways a company can waste energy are by using aging and inefficient equipment or leaving machines and equipment running needlessly. Inefficient energy consumption will lead to unnecessary carbon emissions and costs.
The growing global population and the demand for food production are expected to increase by a further 60% by 2050. To combat environmental pollution and create a more sustainable food sector, energy use during manufacturing needs to be reduced.
To reduce the energy used in the manufacturing and distribution of foods – the first step is to understand what and where energy is being used and more importantly where energy is being wasted. Companies are now promoting any spending on sustainability objectives as investments in their brands, showing their customers that they’re doing the right things.
Caption Data ltd is an end-to-end IoT solution provider, our range of sensors can collate measurements of your energy usage across all areas of food production and distribution. Data is collated and transferred to our secure cloud-hosted platform, where you can remotely monitor and manage assets, configure alarms, view audit trails, and analyse trends. Giving insightful data that can help shape any sustainability strategy and ultimately make cost savings.
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