Industries
Cold Chain Tamper Evident Packaging for Temperature Sensitive Shipments
Chilled and frozen shipments are sealed in the hardest conditions for an adhesive: cold surfaces, condensation, frost and rapid temperature change. Cold chain tamper evidence has to still work when it matters.
Used on insulated boxes, polystyrene shippers, chilled totes, pharmaceutical shipments and frozen pallets where the seal must survive the journey and still show clear evidence if opened.
The problem
Why standard seals fail in the cold
01
Cold application surfaces
Adhesives applied to an already-chilled box often never reach full bond strength.
02
Condensation and frost
Moisture between the label and the surface undermines adhesion and legibility.
03
Difficult substrates
Expanded polystyrene, textured insulated liners and coated cartons are low energy surfaces.
04
Temperature cycling
Freezer to ambient to chilled again puts repeated stress on the construction.
05
Unverified handovers
Multiple carriers and cross-docks with no evidence of whether a shipper was opened.
06
Audit expectations
Customers and auditors asking how you demonstrate the shipment stayed closed.
How it works
Tamper evidence built for low temperature
Cold chain constructions use adhesives selected for cold application and cold storage, and facestocks that stay legible when frosted or wet. Once triggered, the void message is permanent and cannot be re-closed to look untouched.
01
Specify to the surface
Polystyrene, insulated liner, corrugate or plastic tote, and the temperature at the moment of application.
02
Validate before rollout
Sample and test on your own packaging through a full temperature cycle.
03
Check at receipt
Visible evidence of opening at goods-in, alongside your existing temperature monitoring.
Key applications
Cold chain security applications
Seals specified for cold, damp and condensating surfaces through chilled and frozen routes.
Insulated Box Labels
Seals for polystyrene shippers and cool boxes that hold at low temperature and show removal.
View solution →
Controlled Drug and Tote Security
Numbered tote seals for temperature-controlled medicine movements between sites.
View solution →
Cold chain security tape
Carton and case tape selected for chilled and frozen surfaces rather than dry board.
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Pallet security tape
Sealing chilled pallets and stretch-wrapped loads so a broken load is visible at receipt.
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Something not on this list
If your pack, surface or operation is not covered here, send us the pack and the problem and we will specify it.
Put it through the Security Lab →Published data, per construction
Application temperature and service temperature are different numbers
Most cold-chain seal problems are not adhesion failures in the cold. They are constructions applied outside their application window, or applied to a surface that was wet. The two figures below are published data for two specific constructions — they are examples, not a range-wide rating. Other tapes and labels have their own windows, and the correct one is confirmed against your pack.
| Application temperature | Permanent BOPP: approved for application between 0 °C and 12 °C, and the surface must be dry. Non-residue X22: recommended application at +15 °C to +25 °C, hand-applied and rubbed down. |
|---|---|
| Service / storage temperature | Permanent BOPP is designed to work in the cold chain, down below −80 °C in service, once it has been correctly applied. Both constructions are stored before use at 10–20 °C, dry, in the box. |
| Dry surface requirement | Application is to a dry, clean surface. Frost, ice crystals, meltwater or chill-room condensation sit between the adhesive and the pack, and the bond is made to the moisture rather than to the substrate. |
| Condensation and wet-surface risk | A construction rated for cold storage is not, for that reason, reliable for application to a condensating surface. Where packs come straight out of chilled or frozen storage, seal before they go in, or dry and warm the sealing area to the application window first. |
| Substrate restrictions | Non-residue X22 is not designed for cardboard. Expanded polystyrene, coated and waxed board, insulated liners and moulded totes each behave differently, and void quality is surface-dependent and evaluated on your own pack. |
| Healthcare and device example | An insulated shipper carrying refrigerated medicines, an injection-pen secondary pack or diagnostic samples is normally sealed at the packing bench — in the ambient packing area, before the shipper is closed and the coolant is loaded — so the seal is applied inside its window and not to a chilled, damp surface. |
These are the published figures for the two constructions named above and are not a specification for the whole range. Sizes, quantities and lead times are confirmed against your pack and handling conditions before order. Nothing here is a sterility, sterile-barrier or sterilisation claim.
Products typically specified
What cold chain operations usually specify
Cold chain box tape
Secure box tape for carton sealing at low temperature.
Pharmaceutical shipments
Pharmaceutical tamper evidence for temperature sensitive medicines.
Non residue options
Non residue labels where reusable containers must stay clean.
Custom constructions
Custom labels where standard adhesives will not hold.
Specifying it properly
What we need to know to get it right first time
Application temperature
The single most important detail. A construction rated for cold storage is not the same as one rated for cold application. Tell us the surface temperature at the moment the seal goes on.
Surface and packaging type
Expanded polystyrene, insulated liners, waxed or coated board, plastic totes and stretch wrap all behave differently. A sample of the actual pack is worth more than a specification sheet.
Moisture and handling
Condensation on removal from the freezer, ice crystals, wash-down of returnable containers and gloved handling all affect both adhesion and how easily staff can read the seal.
Testing and validation
We test on your packaging through a representative temperature cycle before rollout. Where a claim depends on it, we record what was tested and how it behaved.
Next step
Specify it around your operation
Cold chain failures are usually adhesive and temperature problems, not label design problems. Send us the pack, the surface and the application temperature and we will specify it with you.
Samples, pricing and rollout
Tell us the load types, volumes and sites and we will send samples and a quotation for the constructions that fit.
Send us the problem
Difficult surface, temperature, line speed or a loss pattern you cannot pin down? Put the application through the Security Lab.