NAPERVILLE, Ill. – As part of a commitment to food safety, KeHE is proud to announce it has earned the Cold Carrier Certification, the first certification of its kind focused on excellence in refrigerated transportation.
The Cold Carrier Certification program was initially piloted by several companies, including KeHE. The certification offered by the International Refrigerated Trucking Association (IRTA), recognizes transportation companies that comply with the IRTA Refrigerated Transportation Best Practices Guide. The guide provides support on the Food and Drug Administration’s rule for the Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food, with the overall goal of preventing the improperly refrigerating food, inadequate cleaning of vehicles between loads, and failure to properly protect food.
KeHE’s Executive Vice President of Operations, Chris Sieburg stated, “By earning the Cold Carrier Certification, KeHE has taken the step to ensure our professional truck drivers are knowledgeable about food safety risks.”
The Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA), a trade association that represents industries involved in temperature-control logistics, has collaborated with IRTA to ensure companies abide by FDA regulations. Both organizations provide additional resources to help identify compliance issues through checklists and driver training materials.
Sieburg added, “Our professional truck drivers are honored to display the Cold Carrier Certification logo on their trucks, it shows KeHE’s compliance while encouraging others to join in food safety. These measures were taken to protect our suppliers’ food products and retail partners’ orders. Ultimately, we want to make sure we are providing excellent service to our partners, while reducing food waste as a benefit.”
KeHE’s Cold Carrier Certification is one of many initiatives taken to increase food safety and eliminate food waste. A recent partnership with Climate Collaborative has provided KeHE’s retail partners with food waste resources through a 10-step Food Waste Reduction Toolkit. To learn more about the partnership with Climate Collaborative, visit KeHE’s blog.
About KeHE
With its nationwide distribution network, KeHE provides natural & organic, specialty & fresh products to chain and independent grocery and natural food stores and other specialty product retailers throughout North America. KeHE is an employee-owned, B Corporation certified, company with over 5,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada. Where KeHE Goes, Goodness Follows.® For more about KeHE, visit KeHE.com or check out our social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, & LinkedIn.
About Global Cold Chain Alliance
Comprised of its Core Partners, including the International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses, the World Food Logistics Organization, the International Refrigerated Transportation Association, and the Controlled Environment Building Association, the Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA) represents all major industries engaged in temperature-controlled logistics. GCCA unites partners to be innovative leaders in the temperature-controlled products industry. For more information about GCCA, visit www.gcca.org.
