Supermarket Lighting: Aisles, Fresh Food and Back-of-House
Supermarket lighting has three jobs: even vertical light on shelves down every aisle, accent light with high colour rendering on fresh food, and sealed IP65 fittings for cold stores and back-of-house. EN 12464-1 sets 300 lx as the maintained minimum for sales areas. Linear fittings on track over the aisles keep the light even from shelf top to bottom.
Supermarket lighting has three jobs: even vertical light on the shelves along every aisle, accent light with high colour rendering on fresh food, and sealed IP65 fittings for cold stores and back-of-house. KELVANO supplies continuous linear lighting for the aisles, Ra 90 spots for the counters and tri-proof fittings for the back of the store, and we have supplied linear lighting for a supermarket project in Poland.
The three zones of a supermarket
| Zone | What it needs | What we supply |
|---|---|---|
| Aisles and shelving | Continuous, even light on the shelf faces | LED batten and linear lights, twin-row linear track light |
| Fresh food, bakery, deli | Accent light, high colour rendering | LED track lighting, square grid downlight |
| Entrance, tills, promotions | Bright, glare-free light | Anti-glare COB downlight |
| Cold stores, back-of-house, loading | Sealed IP65 fittings | LED tri-proof lights, round tube tri-proof light |
| Car park and service yard | Outdoor area light | LED floodlights |
Aisles: light the shelves, not the floor
Customers read labels on vertical shelf faces, so the aisle light has to reach the shelves from top to bottom. Continuous linear runs mounted along the aisle do this best.
- Twin-row linear track light: two LED rows on a V-shaped face, so one run lights the shelving on both sides of the aisle.
- LED batten and linear lights: track linear runs for general aisle and store light, with on-fixture DIP-switch settings.
- White linear track light: a clean white run for stores with white ceilings and track.
EN 12464-1 sets 300 lx as the maintained minimum for sales areas. Supermarkets usually design above it and check the vertical light on the shelf faces, not only the floor.
Fresh food and counters: colour rendering first
Fresh produce, meat, bread and flowers sell on how they look. Under low colour rendering they look flat and tired. Our track spots and grid downlights for these areas are Ra 90 or higher, with narrow 15° to 24° beams to put light on the counter and not on the customer.
| Counter | Common colour temperature | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Bakery, meat, deli | 3000K | Warm light flatters bread crusts and meat |
| Fruit and vegetables | 3500K to 4000K | Keeps greens and fruit bright and natural |
| Aisles and general floor | 4000K | Clean, bright, easy to read labels |
Most of our spot series can be supplied with a switch for power and one of three colour temperatures, so each counter is set on site from the same stocked model. Exact steps are confirmed per model on your quotation.
Back-of-house and cold stores
Cold stores, preparation rooms and loading areas are damp, cold and washed down. They need sealed fittings. Our LED tri-proof lights are IP65 for these areas, and the round tube tri-proof light has a smooth round body with stainless steel end caps that is easy to wipe clean.
Plan a new store or refit
Send your store plan, ceiling height and shelving layout. We return a fixture schedule for aisles, counters and back-of-house, with a quotation within 24 hours. We can prepare a lighting layout for qualified projects. Orders run from 50 units to full chain roll-outs.
Request a quote → · WhatsApp +86 189 9834 8092 · info@kelvano.co · replies within business hours (GMT+8)
Questions from specifiers
What lighting does a supermarket need?
How much light should a supermarket aisle have?
Why use a twin-row linear light over aisles?
What colour temperature suits fresh food?
Have you supplied supermarket projects before?
Send your floor plan.
Get a lux layout back.
- Quotation within 24 hours, FOB, or DDP for the UK and EU, pricing by quantity
- Samples are charged at USD 100–300 per piece, depending on the product and its configuration. Standard samples are ready in 7 days; samples that need new tooling are quoted with their own lead time. The sample charge is credited against your first order over USD 3,000 placed within six months.
- Orders of around 500 units ship in 25–35 days from the deposit; larger or customised orders are confirmed on the proforma invoice.
- IES and LDT photometric files can be measured for project specifications
- Answered by our project team