Articles in this issue present an illustration of how another step forward in cold chain technology, rapid cooling of shell eggs, might be used to help grow shell egg exports to countries that, somewhat ironically, still have widespread cultural acceptance of non-refrigerated meat and eggs. Consumers in China eat just over half of the world's pork output, and two-thirds of this pork is sold hot and fresh. The continued market dominance of hot and fresh meat and eggs in China presents somewhat of a market barrier for imported meat and egg products which have to be refrigerated or frozen to prevent spoilage and maintain quality.
Advertisement
The culture in China will need to change somewhat for consumers to understand the food safety and quality benefits provided by refrigeration. Consumers will need to be educated on the benefits of refrigerated meat and eggs. The culture will take time to change, but a desire to improve food safety ultimately will lead to development of a cold chain for meat and eggs. As the culture changes in China and the cold chain develops, techniques like rapid shell egg cooling might just help increase exports of U.S. eggs.