Alfa Beta joins Mega Image in the sequel of Albert Heijn’s dry misting success story

November 30, 2021 - By sharing best practices across all of Ahold Delhaize brands, we can support each other to keep ahead of the competition. One example is the successful implementation of a pilot program that sees the positive effects of dry misting on fresh produce in our Alfa Beta and Mega Image brands. This comes after the successful Not for Resale (NfR) European Waste Reduction event where Albert Heijn shared its best practices on dry misting.  ​​​​​​​

How does dry misting work?

Inspired by the morning mist that hangs over crop fields, engineers sought to replicate this natural occurrence and managed to develop a dry misting system. The system is equipped with ultrasonic technology to make the finest mist from the purest filtered water. As the mist floats out of the humidifier through a special diffuser and thinly surrounds supermarket produce, the mist evaporates, the humidity rises, and the temperature drops naturally. This allows the produce to keep important nutrients and have a significantly increased shelf life as it can better retain moisture and stay fresh.

Pilot expectations

The installation of the dry misting system in Alfa Beta was completed in early October and Mega Image's three month pilot began in September. The NfR team has taken the lead in sharing information and coordinating the project, supported by the technical department. In the three months that the pilot will last, several factors will be analyzed. One of the most relevant being the generated savings enabled by decreased shrink/loss and improved sale performance. The NfR team is confident it will be a success and will bring benefits to others.