Every year in the United States, more than 130 billion pounds of food are wasted, much of it spoiled before it ever reaches consumers. A major culprit is the lack of visibility in the cold chain, where perishable goods are often left vulnerable during storage and transport. The vulnerability could be solved through the use of real-time data insights, essentially knowing what’s going on behind the closed doors of a trailer. A Norwegian technology company, Surfact, believes it has a solution, one born out of military experience and designed for some of the toughest supply chain environments.
The company’s CEO and founder, Per Magne Helseth, first saw the problem during his service with the Norwegian forces in Afghanistan. Shipments of food and medicine deteriorated under extreme conditions, often before they could reach those who needed them most. The frustration of watching vital supplies go to waste sparked an idea: build a tool that could reveal what was really happening inside the supply line. Years later, that idea became Surfact and its flagship product, Emma, a hockey-puck-shaped smart cargo tracker that is now making its debut in U.S. foodservice distribution.
Showcased this week at the International Foodservice Distributors Association Solutions Conference in Columbus, Ohio, Emma promises to “make the invisible visible.” The device rides directly with the cargo, capturing real-time data on temperature, position, movement, shock, and light.
Unlike traditional reefer unit readings or passive loggers, Emma replicates the conditions that the products themselves experience. And with no need for infrastructure or gateways, the tracker turns any trailer into a “smart” trailer within seconds.