Optimizing Storage Assignment in Temperature Zones for Fruits and Vegetables

Abstract

Food loss in retail and consumer stages accounts for a substantial share of the total waste in fruit and vegetable (F\&V) supply chains, while maintaining product freshness requires significant refrigeration energy. Motivated by the rapid expansion of micro-fulfillment centers (MFCs) and the lack of integrated decision-making tools for temperature-controlled storage, this study develops an optimization model for storage location assignment (SLA) of F\&V that jointly considers cooling energy consumption, product deterioration in the warehouse, and expected food loss at the consumer level. Unlike existing SLA approaches that focus solely on matching products to ideal storage conditions, our model captures the full freshness–energy trade-off using life cycle assessment as a unified metric for environmental impact. A novel continuous-time representation of the First-Expire-First-Out rule is introduced, enabling explicit estimation of remaining shelf-life and dependencies across batches while avoiding the large set of intermediate variables typical in prior formulations. The proposed MIQP model optimizes the allocation of limited temperature-zone capacity and allows transfers of existing inventory across zones. Then, the proposed model will be validated through an experimental design. The proposed framework provides MFCs with a holistic decision support tool that aligns inventory placement with corporate sustainability goals by reducing both energy use and total food loss across the supply chain.