Food Storage & Processing

Maintaining proper humidity levels is essential for preserving food quality during storage and distribution. Environmental conditions that are too dry can cause weight loss, shrinkage, dehydration, and reduced product quality, while excess moisture can contribute to spoilage, mold growth, and other storage challenges. DriSteem humidification, dehumidification, and water treatment solutions help food storage facilities maintain stable environmental conditions that support product integrity and storage efficiency.

From fresh produce and packaged foods to refrigerated warehouses and distribution centers, proper humidity control helps protect valuable inventory, reduce waste, and maintain product quality throughout storage. By maintaining precise humidity levels, facilities can improve shelf life, minimize product loss, and support more consistent storage conditions.

Issues caused by uncontrolled humidity

Controlling the relative humidity (RH) in commercial food storage locations and processing facilities helps reduce food spoilage and safety risks, protect food quality and equipment, and improve control over operational expenses. Businesses in the food industry should prioritize humidity control to mitigate these problems and ensure the integrity of their food products. 

Many food safety regulations require businesses to maintain specific humidity conditions in food storage areas. Failure to comply with these regulations can result in legal and regulatory issues, including fines and penalties.

Relative humidity levels that are too low or too high can cause the following issues in food storage and processing applications:

• Shortened shelf life: Uncontrolled humidity can lead to accelerated moisture loss or excessive moisture accumulation in food products, causing them to spoil or deteriorate quickly. This results in reduced shelf life and increased food waste.
• Food safety risks: In environments with unregulated humidity, harmful bacteria, molds, and pathogens can thrive, posing significant safety risks. Contaminated food can cause foodborne illnesses and pose health hazards to consumers.
• Degraded food quality: Fluctuating humidity levels can alter the texture, flavor, and appearance of food products. For example, vegetables may wilt, bread may stale, and meats may lose moisture and tenderness.
• Equipment damage: High humidity levels can cause corrosion, rust, and mold growth on food storage equipment, refrigeration systems, and infrastructure. This leads to increased maintenance and replacement costs.
• Inefficient energy use: Uncontrolled humidity can force refrigeration systems to work harder to maintain proper temperature. This results in higher energy consumption and increased operational costs.
• Inconsistent food quality: Fluctuating humidity levels can lead to inconsistent food quality, negatively affecting the taste and appearance of menu items and food products, resulting in customer dissatisfaction, negative reviews, and reduced repeat business, harming a food-related business’s reputation and profitability.
• Increased operational expenses: Uncontrolled humidity can lead to higher operational costs due to food waste, energy inefficiency, and more frequent equipment maintenance and repairs.

Resources

Buyer’s Guide: Humidity Control for Food Storage
Learn how low or fluctuating humidity levels can negatively affect operations and products in food storage and processing facilities, creating potential risks to food product quality, safety, and shelf life.

The Commercial Storage of Fruits, Vegetables, and Florist and Nursery Stocks
Guidelines from the USDA with summaries of current storage requirements of fresh fruits, vegetables, cut flowers, and other horticultural crops.

Next steps

Contact your local DriSteem representative to learn more about humidity control for commercial food storage and processing. Use the Find a Rep tool below to find your nearest representative.

Already using humidity control to protect commercial food storage and processing facilities?

For best performance and highest efficiency, existing humidification systems should be checked to determine whether replacement parts are needed, whether any additional maintenance is required, and whether a software update is available. Contact your local DriSteem representative to learn more.