Imagine how much electricity is required to sustain a
supermarket with numerous rows of refrigerators and hundreds of
lamps that light up the huge space. Statistics show that big
supermarket chains use around ten times the energy of a normal
household. Now a new concept developed by researchers at the
Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg,
Germany, gives the opportunity to supermarket operators to cut
energy use by as much as 25%. The idea was developed in
collaboration with property developers, manufacturers and the
research team. As stated by Nicolas Réhault, Group Leader at
ISE, the aim is to reduce energy consumption by focusing on the
cooling systems. In order to maintain the quality of various
foods, the temperature of freezer-systems should be maintained
at -25 degrees Celsius, for fish and meat, or 4 degrees for
cheese and sausages. The practical method that is generally
adopted, is the use of plug-in freezers, which keep the required
temperatures, while heating up the store at