Whitepaper unpacks food retail energy efficiency

The Energy efficiency in food retail stores: Regulatory and technical aspects, and AI tools white paper has been developed in response to factors including energy price volatility, emerging European regulations, and shifts in global investor expectations around emissions and built asset performance.

It steps through energy efficiency, performance disclosure and building decarbonisation policy in jurisdictions including Europe, the US, Australia, Singapore and China. It also examines the main challenges and opportunities of energy optimisation in large retail stores that carry food items as a major product category.

Energy price trends, available technologies and the potential value of digital technologies including energy monitoring and analytics and artificial intelligence are also explored.

It advocates for a reframing of energy as a “strategic management variable” rather than being merely an operational cost.

“The revised (European) Energy Performance of Buildings Directive establishes the regulatory framework for improving the energy performance of the EU building stock and achieving climate neutrality by 2050,” the report states.

“In this context, supermarkets represent a key sector where improvements in HVAC, refrigeration and automation systems can reduce energy consumption and, as a result, greenhouse gas emissions.”

In addition to energy efficiency, the EPBD also addresses decarbonisation of building energy use, indoor environmental quality, modernisation through digitalisation and smart building systems, and enhanced access to financing and technical assistance.

The white paper states refrigeration systems account for approximately 40% of total electricity consumption in supermarkets, while lighting represents a further 17–20%, with the remaining energy demand attributable to HVAC systems, bakery and food preparation equipment, and other in-store electrical loads.

Making refrigeration cabinets more efficient is therefore one of the easiest ways for supermarkets to cut energy use. The authors caution that optimisation must be achieved while also ensuring food safety, product quality and operational continuity.

The white paper explores the role of AI in data analysis, plant monitoring and the identification of anomalies and improvement opportunities. It also, however, emphasises the central role of human expertise in critical decisions and in the fine tuning of systems.

“Energy savings cannot be achieved by simply scheduling or shutting down systems, as optimal management of refrigeration systems requires a balance between two potentially conflicting needs: maintaining the right temperature conditions for food preservation, and minimising energy consumption,” the paper states.

“Protecting food quality and safety – important for both public health and economic and environmental sustainability – considerably constrains the scope for intervention. Efficiency improvements therefore need to be achieved in limited space, between optimal refrigeration and the minimum indispensable.

“It is precisely for this reason that technologies based on artificial intelligence for the analysis, optimisation, and management of complex energy systems distributed across retail chains are particularly relevant.”

The white paper makes a strong case for refrigeration in food retail as a focal point where energy cost reductions, emissions reductions, service quality and contributions to corporate sustainability goals converge.

Access the white paper here.

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