Since humankind learned to store foods in cold corners of a cave, cool riverbeds, and packed snow, the evolution of cold storage has advanced and grown into what we use now on commercial and residential levels. Today, our cold storage technology takes the form of industrial climate-controlled warehouses and home refrigerators that remind you to pick up milk via text message. The benefits these cold storage containers have given humankind are numerous, from significantly decreasing food-borne illness to providing fresh fruits and vegetables year-round. At Minnesota Freezer Warehouse Company, reliable cold storage is a continued primary focus, and we’re dedicated to providing continuous reliability for commercial refrigeration in Albert Lea, MN.
The difference between commercial refrigeration even 100 years ago and today is vast, but the steps leading up to current cold storage technology show a logical pattern of research into cooling chemicals, container materials, and health and environmental impact.
Refrigeration’s Past
In the late 16th century, the food and drink industry was beginning to put to use industrial cooling methods beyond ice harvesting. The wine industry began to utilize sodium and potassium nitrates to cool their products, and these chemical additions were soon used in other commercial food storage. This was the first occurrence of the word “refrigerant” and the reference of the cooling of food as “refrigerate.” Over the next few centuries, the development of refrigeration technology stagnated until the 1800s when a growing population in the Western world demanded more reliable cold containment for the transportation and storage of large food quantities. In the late 19th century, the first refrigerators were patented. By 1865, refrigeration machines were used commercially in the US, and in the 1900s there was widespread use of ammonia-cycle refrigeration in the food industry. In 1996, the Regulatory Clean Air Act changed the commonly used refrigerant from Freon to HFC 134a, a haloalkane refrigerant with a significantly lower potential for ozone depletion. During that time and since, the development of refrigeration technology has continued to focus on eliminating or lessening impacts on the earth while improving container quality.
Our Refrigeration
MFWC has its foundation in the 1915 company warehouse for De Soto Creamery & Produce Co., and since then we’ve built our standards for commercial refrigeration facilities on storage reliability and adherence to environmental protection. Now in our fourth generation of family owners, MFWC provides trusted climate-controlled storage including advanced commercial refrigeration. With continued quality assurance, diligent inventorying, and backup power supply systems, you can rely on MFWC to protect food safety regulations and product security from transportation units to grocery store shelves.
To learn more about our own history with climate-controlled storage or to find out about our facilities for commercial refrigeration in Albert Lea, MN, contact Minnesota Freezer Warehouse Company at (844) 373-1477 today.