Karen McQuade, the newly elected president of the British Frozen Food Federation, called in her maiden speech for members to engage in the debate around raising the standard temperature for frozen food.

Addressing the Federation’s annual lunch on November 19, McQuade said that there is a compelling environmental case for raising the standard – which has been set at -18 degrees since the frozen food industry was born 100 years ago.

Karen McQuade said: “Our freezers have been set to -18 for a century, is now the time to consider turning the temperature up? We can reduce emissions and save energy by moving to a higher temperature, but it’s not a simple switch.

“Raising the temperature for frozen food storage to -15 could reduce energy consumption and cut global emissions by 17.7 million metric tonnes annually, the equivalent of removing 3.8 million cars from the road.”

The BFFF has been involved with research into the question of increasing the standard temperature since 2009, and earlier this year it joined the international coalition The Move to -15°C.

Karen McQuade said that it’s now time for the industry to engage in a frank discussion about whether the standard is still fit for purpose and what potential changes could be made to improve sustainability.

“The first step is to fill in the gaps in scientific research supporting the temperature shift. Research is already underway. Earlier this year Nomad Foods conducted an 18 month study which found no significant changes in food quality or safety within the categories tested at -15”, she said. “However more research is needed to understand the impact on delicate food categories.

“I hope more than anything that next year I can stand here with news that we have moved closer to a safe and stable new standard temperature globally.”

The new president also highlighted the challenges the industry faces in terms of changing consumer attitudes and addressing a widespread lack of freezer space in homes, and the role the sector can play in helping reduce food waste.

UK Foodhall Ltd founder McQuade was elected president at the BFFF AGM on November 13, succeeding Ian Stone, who had been in post since December 2020.