Trusted to keep deliveries moving: How Samsara drives food & beverage distribution

In food and beverage distribution, every mile matters. Products must arrive fresh, drivers need to stay safe, and operations have to run efficiently even when demand surges or conditions shift.

Trusted by leading distributors such as Sysco GB, Delifresh and Graham’s the Family Dairy, Samsara provides food and beverage operators with real-time visibility and AI-powered insights to deliver every order safely, efficiently, and compliantly. With Samsara as their connected operations foundation, teams can operate with confidence by enabling:

• On-road safety: Protect drivers and brand reputation with AI-powered safety that prevents risk early, reduces incidents, and lowers costs.

• Cold chain compliance: Deliver the quality your customers expect with real-time temperature visibility to maintain cold chain compliance, prevent spoilage, and ensure every delivery arrives fresh.

• Operational efficiency: Protect margins with real-time fleet insights that help reduce fuel and labour costs, improve on-time performance, and uncover hidden capacity.

• Driver-first support: Create a culture where drivers feel valued and supported with AI-powered feedback and recognition that builds safer habits and lasting loyalty.

Customer success story: Delifresh 

Delifresh serves over 2,000 customers across the UK catering and hospitality industry, making up to 1,500 multi-drop deliveries daily. Their reliance on outdated tracking systems previously left them vulnerable, a reality brought into sharp focus after a serious accident linked to driver drowsiness revealed that 40% of their drivers exhibited distracted behaviour.

Turning to Samsara, Delifresh implemented AI Dash Cams and set up drowsiness detection alerts, but their approach was distinctively supportive rather than punitive. Adopting the mission "Self Awareness Could Save a Life," management used data to foster a culture of care. This shift empowered drivers to develop personal strategies to combat fatigue such as singing or setting sleep alarms, and encouraged peer-to-peer safety accountability.

The results were transformative. Delifresh reduced road incident frequency by 41% and distracted driving by 35% while nearly doubling their mileage. Beyond safety, operational efficiency also soared; the company cut unnecessary redelivery miles by 54% and slashed accident reporting time from 21 days to just 6 days. 

For Delifresh, the partnership with Samsara has evolved far beyond a standard vendor relationship. "We are one team: Delifresh and Samsara. The approach, the attitudes, the values of everyone at Samsara epitomises the values we carry," said Andrew Sharp, Transport Shift Manager at Delifresh.

How leading food and beverage operators keep every delivery safe, fresh, and on time 

Managing fleets, perishable goods, and tight delivery windows is complex, but Samsara gives teams real-time visibility to stay ahead. With AI-powered insights and integrated tools for routing, communication, and quality control, operators can support drivers, maintain product integrity, and ensure every delivery arrives safely and on time.

Tip 1: Resolve incidents faster with real-time visibility

When incidents or claims occur, time is the biggest factor in cost and complexity. Manually piecing together what happened slows down investigations and often leaves operators relying on incomplete information. With Samsara AI Dash Cams, AI Multicam, and cloud video retrieval, safety teams can access footage within minutes, speeding up incident review with clear, objective evidence that insurers and police need.

“If an incident happens, Samsara lets us react instantly. As soon as an accident occurs, we can contact the relevant insurance company with tangible evidence within an hour. A quick reaction time means cases don’t drag on and we get a resolution much faster. That’s saved us a lot of money on insured costs, which have already decreased 15% year on year.” Paul Duncalf, Safety, Training and Fleet Compliance Director, Sysco GB

Tip 2: Prevent spoilage and reduce waste with connected temperature monitoring

Maintaining a compliant, efficient cold chain is essential for any food and beverage operation, but manual temperature checks and fragmented reporting can create gaps that put product quality at risk. With Samsara Environmental Monitors, teams gain continuous, real-time temperature data across every reefer and trailer. Automated alerts help prevent spoilage before it leads to waste, while digitised temperature records streamline audits and reduce back-office workload. 

“By utilising the Asset Gateway system, we are also able to not only add temperature sensors to our mobile refrigeration but additionally to our chills, where alerts can be raised to our dairy technical team should any temperature fall outside of our set ranges.” Peter Clayton, Group Head of Business Systems, Graham's the Family Dairy

Tip 3: Streamline driver workflows to reduce downtime and improve delivery speed

For high-volume delivery operations, the smallest inefficiencies compound quickly across hundreds of daily routes. Manual DVIRs, paper forms, and disconnected navigation tools slow drivers down and introduce compliance risk. With Samsara’s digital workflows, drivers can complete inspections, access routes, log hours, and begin their day all from a single mobile app. This reduces friction, eliminates redundant tasks, and allows drivers to start routes faster while ensuring compliance and accuracy.

“We were astonished at what the portal offers: from vehicle tracking to forklift truck checks, all in one app, also promoting paperless documentation across our business.” Mark Heywood, Transport Manager, Delifresh

Tip 4: Support driver growth and retention with AI-powered learning

Driver experience matters, especially in a tight labour market where onboarding speed, coaching quality, and career development can be the difference between keeping talent and losing it. With Samsara’s AI-driven learning tools, organisations can deliver personalised training paths that help drivers build skills faster and feel more supported on the job. Instead of one-size-fits-all coaching, AI surfaces relevant lessons based on driver behaviour, enabling leaders to reinforce safety, boost confidence, and create a stronger sense of belonging across the fleet. 

“AI helps us personalise onboarding, recommend learning pathways, and accelerate skill building. That creates a real sense of opportunity and belonging—not just during the holiday rush, but throughout the year.” Tehzin Chadwick, Senior Vice President of Safety, UNFI

Tip 5: Build a safer, more connected workforce on one platform

Safety and operations teams work best when they have direct access to the information they need. Samsara’s role-based permissions make it easy to give every team member the right level of visibility, all within a single platform. With unified access to safety reports, vehicle data, and coaching insights, teams can collaborate more effectively and coach workers in real time, creating a stronger safety culture across the entire organisation.

“It was easy to set up user permissions for our team. We wanted to give them the accessibility to view everything they needed to view so they can do their jobs. Everything is on one platform so they don’t have to toggle between different tools. Now, our team can coach our employees on how to be safer.” Beth Woodbury, VP of Safety, Aunt Millie’s