Do you know about our new mobile refrigerated container yet?
You should look out for them when you’re shopping with us: there are special mobile refrigerated containers rolling through the aisles. The Liquid Ice Containers (LIC), as the name implies, use liquid ice to keep our fresh products cool during transport.
What is liquid ice?
Liquid ice is a frozen but liquid mixture of water and ethanol. By mixing these two liquids and stirring them constantly while freezing, the ice remains liquid. It looks a little like a slushie. A machine then pumps the liquid ice into the walls of a specially designed mobile refrigeration container.
More space
The new container is the same size as a conventional mobile refrigeration container. But the LIC is far roomier inside and so has a larger load volume.
Our own innovation
Our Research & Development department developed the container themselves and perfected the liquid ice technology.
Sustainable
When the containers come back from our shops, we replace the melted liquid ice with freshly frozen liquid ice. The liquid ice from the containers is refrozen and used again in another LIC. So not a drop is lost.
At a constant temperature
The LIC remains at the same constant temperature for 48 hours. So we’re 100% sure that our products remain fresh and we can plan our transport more flexibly and efficiently.
Quickly cool
When a container is injected with liquid ice, it reaches the desired temperature in under 30 minutes and is then ready to be loaded with chilled, fresh products.
User-friendly
The container has a handy click system on the door which prevents it from closing when the container is being loaded or unloaded. So we can quickly and easily put all our fresh products in our fresh produce section, ready for you.
Environmentally-friendly
The LIC has 73% less impact on climate change than a conventional refrigerated container. And its CO2 emissions are far lower. The liquid ice is made using green electricity from wind and solar power.
VIDEO: liquid ice: Colruyt Group innovates with its refrigerated containers
With this initiative, we contribute to the following Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
