2022 was a year of significant food supply disruption caused by a number of unforeseen variables. So what can we expect from 2023 when many of those same variables remain challenging to predict?
Reveam’s core mission remains steadfast: to improve food safety and maintain produce freshness while safeguarding the world’s food supply and reducing waste. But there are a number of externalities – both positive and negative – which Reveam sees on the horizon for the coming year.
Continued Supply Chain Issues
2022 will segue into 2023 as a year of global uncertainty impacting ongoing supply chain disruptions from the aftereffects of the Covid pandemic, now combined with newer issues including the unpredictable war in Ukraine and other geopolitical risks.
Safeguarding the world’s food supply will be critical to ensure global food availability. Aligning supply and demand, whether through mitigating labor shortages in the food distribution sector or reacting to changes in consumer tastes due to scarcity, will continue to be paramount for food producers as they face another year of disrupted planning and rapidly-imposed change.
Food logistics and supply chain solutions that ensure increased longevity of produce will remain important in the face of sustained potential scarcity and disruptions, while innovative strategies and flexibility will be the keys to success.
Consumer Pricing Concerns
Each year Americans waste more than $218B on throwing out food, according to the hunger-relief organization Feeding America. Solutions that increase the freshness and duration of produce go a long way towards helping consumers make their food last longer.
While the skyrocketing food prices of 2022 seem to have abated somewhat, inflation and “shrinkflation” at grocery stores will continue to eat into consumers’ wallets. 2023 will likely be another year of budget concern for consumers, so solutions that stretch food further, such as increasing produce shelf-life, will have a real-life positive impact for consumers as well as retailers.
Sustainable Choices
In parallel, consumers are demonstrating an ever-increasing focus on sustainability and waste reduction, charging their food providers with delivering more earth-friendly options.
As consumers continue to make more choices based on ameliorating issues like climate change, at Reveam, we’re proud that our Electronic Cold-Pasteurization® (ECP®) solution not only enhances safety but also reduces food waste through extended freshness, a major concern for American families.
Government Advances
On the regulatory side, the FDA will continue to support consumers and producers through initiatives such as its “New Era of Smarter Food Safety.”
The program, launched in 2020, focuses on food-safety related elements including using technology to improve the traceability of produce as it moves through the supply chain, while in parallel applying that technology to improve foodborne illness prevention and optimize the response when outbreaks do happen.
The program also encourages the development of new business models for food safety, with the modernization of retail structures. As an umbrella concept, the FDA promotes the development of a broader food safety culture, whereby all key stakeholders in food production design and apply better principles of food safety.
Additionally, the USDA’s APHIS program (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) has just turned 50 years old. This organization, charged with certifying animal and plant health last year protected over 300 threatened or endangered wildlife and plant species from perils such as phytosanitary pests, invasive species and other hazards that could otherwise cross the border into the United States.
What Does 2023 Look Like For Reveam?
Reveam continues to ramp up its pilot treatment facility and looks to expand operations to support the global food chain through another potentially tumultuous year.
Our proven Electronic Cold-Pasteurization® (ECP®) solution eliminates pests and pathogens from fresh fruits and produce while using no chemicals and creating no harmful byproducts, while also extending shelf life at the peak of freshness to reduce food waste – all factors that contribute to a safer, healthier and more sustainable food chain ecosystem.
