A detailed analysis of the seven major development models of agricultural product cold chain logistics

With the adjustment of agricultural structure and the continuous improvement of residents' consumption level, the output and circulation volume of agricultural products in China have been increasing year by year. While driving the great development of cold chain logistics, the whole society has also put forward higher requirements for the safety and quality of agricultural product cold chain logistics. Due to the successive emergence of models such as direct supply from production areas and direct connection between farmers and supermarkets, the fresh food e-commerce market has experienced explosive growth, and the cold chain logistics of agricultural products is developing vigorously.

                                                                   The development model of agricultural product cold chain logistics

Agricultural product cold chain logistics is no longer confined to the traditional development model centered on agricultural product wholesale markets. New models such as third-party logistics, platforms, leasing, and central kitchens are gradually emerging, with distinct characteristics of diversification and specialization. At present, the development models of domestic agricultural product cold chain logistics can basically be classified into the following seven types:

                                                                          01Wholesale market-dominated type

Agricultural product wholesale markets are the main channels for the circulation of agricultural products in China. Cold chain logistics, which integrates the acquisition, storage, distribution and bulk sales of agricultural products with large-scale wholesale markets as the core, is currently the most important development model of agricultural product cold chain logistics.

Wholesale markets closely connect the upstream and downstream of the agricultural product cold chain logistics chain. On the one hand, the market demand demonstrated by consumers in the wholesale market is directly fed back to the upstream agricultural product suppliers and related processing enterprises, enabling the agricultural products in the wholesale market to more precisely meet the demands of the end consumers, thereby reducing inventory and lowering sales risks. On the other hand, wholesale markets can direct and coordinate all links of the cold chain logistics of agricultural products to ensure that products are sold to buyers with better quality, improve customer satisfaction and capture market share.

                                                                                                   02Agricultural product processing enterprise-led type

The agricultural product cold chain logistics model centered on agricultural product processing enterprises generally relies on agricultural product production bases. Through batch processing and handling of agricultural product raw materials, the processed finished products are sold to all parts of the country through cold chain logistics transportation channels.

Small and medium-sized agricultural product processing enterprises often rely on existing wholesalers or chain retailers to complete the semi-finished processing and sales of agricultural products. Large-scale agricultural product processing enterprises have their own cold chain logistics and distribution facilities for agricultural products. Their business scope ranges from raw material supply and collection to finished product processing and sales, covering a complete upstream and downstream network system of the agricultural product supply chain. They are gradually forming an integrated supply and sales self-operated cold chain logistics network for agricultural products.

                                                                                     03Retail enterprise-led

The agricultural product cold chain logistics model led by chain retail enterprises refers to the fact that chain retail enterprises build their own agricultural product production bases and processing factories, or choose to cooperate with third-party cold chain logistics enterprises to collect, process and directly transport agricultural products to their self-operated chain sales stores.

This model can bypass the intermediate distributors in the agricultural product supply chain, achieving immediate connection between producers and consumers. It not only ensures product quality and safety but also reduces circulation costs, thus forming a competitive advantage. The characteristics of small-batch, multi-batch and multi-variety distribution of fresh agricultural products in cities make the retail enterprise-led agricultural product cold chain logistics model superior to the wholesale market-based agricultural product cold chain logistics model, and it can more effectively utilize the fragmented and scattered product resources in China. At present, an increasing number of cold chain logistics enterprises have established large-scale transfer and distribution centers for the sale of agricultural products in chain supermarkets.

                                                                                             04Third-party logistics type

Third-party cold chain logistics service enterprises (3PL), bound by contracts and based on alliances, provide professional, personalized and information-based cold chain logistics agency services. The entrusting enterprises can complete the full supervision of the service process of cold chain logistics enterprises through information systems.

Third-party cold chain logistics enterprises generally offer two types of services: professional cold chain logistics agency and information consultation. The former can rely on the self-owned distribution centers, refrigerated trucks and other cold chain logistics facilities and equipment of logistics enterprises to coordinate and connect with each link of agricultural product cold chain logistics. The latter can provide diagnosis and information consultation services for problems in agricultural product cold chain logistics, and formulate comprehensive and professional operation and solution plans for agricultural product cold chain logistics.

Fland cold chain electric vehicles are specially designed for the last-mile cold chain equipment. They have a range of 60 kilometers, a cooling duration of 8 hours, a temperature control range of -18℃ to 5℃, adjustable temperature, customizable size, can be registered, and have road rights. Refrigerated containers can also be directly placed on vans, trucks, containers or tricycles, making transportation more flexible and convenient.

                                                                                                         05Platform type

In recent years, a large number of cold chain logistics information service platforms have emerged in China, which rely on e-commerce and public hybrid clouds to integrate resources in the cold chain logistics industry, promoting the formation of a platform-based development model for agricultural product cold chain logistics. The service scope of the agricultural product cold chain logistics information service platform usually covers the whole country, providing services such as agricultural product supply and demand matching, transaction matching, cold chain logistics vehicle and warehouse services, supply chain finance, and market index release.

From the customer's order placement to the carrier's dispatching, transfer and distribution, the agricultural product cold chain logistics service platform can integrate resources at each node, optimize transaction methods, innovate business models, efficiently connect all links of the agricultural product supply chain upstream and downstream, and achieve multi-party collaboration and full-process visualization, etc. This model can effectively address the two major bottlenecks in the cold chain logistics of agricultural products: information asymmetry and lack of integrity. By providing one-stop, personalized and all-round logistics services, it leads the intelligent development of the cold chain logistics industry of agricultural products.

                                                                                                                   06Leasing type

Driven by market demand, the demand for professional logistics service software systems and hardware facilities and equipment such as cold storage in China is increasing. As a result, companies engaged in professional leasing services for agricultural product cold chain logistics have gradually emerged, and the leasing type agricultural product cold chain logistics model has also come into being.

Agricultural product cold chain logistics software and hardware leasing service providers have actively formed alliances with third-party professional logistics enterprises, carried out business connection and cooperation in agricultural product cold chain logistics, integrated the producers' own cold chain resources, social resources and their own resources, and have gradually established a modern agricultural product cold chain logistics management and operation system.

                                                                                                                07Central kitchen type

A "central kitchen" refers to an integrated kitchen model that involves unified procurement, unified distribution, and standardized production and preparation of ingredients. The functions cover various aspects such as centralized raw material procurement, process specialization, inspection and testing, cold storage, supply chain information processing, unified packaging, and unified distribution, achieving cost reduction and efficiency improvement in an intensive, large-scale, and standardized manner.

Against the backdrop of China's continuous improvement of industrial standards, the model of "central kitchen + cold chain logistics transportation network" has gradually become a new trend in the development of the modern catering industry. Large-scale central kitchens conduct industrial chain segmentation through consistent procurement, production, distribution, etc., and achieve agglomeration benefits. They also collaborate with high-quality suppliers, channel partners, and cold chain logistics enterprises in the upstream and downstream of agricultural products to build a lean agricultural product supply chain management system centered on the central kitchen, which not only ensures product quality and safety but also reduces costs.

Against the backdrop of China's continuous improvement of industrial standards, the model of "central kitchen + cold chain logistics transportation network" has gradually become a new trend in the development of the modern catering industry. Large-scale central kitchens conduct industrial chain segmentation through consistent procurement, production, distribution, etc., and achieve agglomeration benefits. They also collaborate with high-quality suppliers, channel partners, and cold chain logistics enterprises in the upstream and downstream of agricultural products to build a lean agricultural product supply chain management system centered on the central kitchen, which not only ensures product quality and safety but also reduces costs.

Fulande has successively launched various types of mobile cold storages, including smart energy-saving mobile cold storages, cold chain electric vehicles, container cold storages, hoisting cold storages, trailer cold storages, solar cold storages, glass door cold storages, etc., as well as personalized customized cold storages, fully meeting the usage scenarios of different customers. It will effectively guarantee the safety of agricultural products and food and extend the shelf life of goods.

Meanwhile, relying on Internet of Things technology and big data analysis capabilities, Fulande has launched its self-developed cold cloud management platform, ECO cloud computing energy-saving control, and intelligent defrosting technology, achieving defrosting when there is frost and no defrosting when there is none. It is equipped with AI health diagnosis function for cold storage, big data to determine the operating status of the unit, remote real-time monitoring and maintenance to ensure the healthy operation of the equipment. In addition, it supports centralized management of chain stores, allowing the headquarters to view the operational status of each store in real time.