The purpose of this paper was to summarize the current development of the food cold chain and provide a reference for promoting the development of food cold chain. The application and research status of food cold chain technology all over the world in recent years were analyzed, and the developments in different sections of the food cold chain (pre-cooling, quick-frozen, cold storage, transport, marketing, et al.) were introduced. The results showed that there are still some problems in the technology and application of the food cold chain in China. And there is still a large room for development. In conclusion, the development of food cold chain does not only need to improve the related laws, regulations and standards, but also need to study and develop intelligentized cold chain facilities with low energy consumption and high reliability. For fruits and vegetables cold chain, it is necessary to develop intelligent cold chain facilities in the place of production. The operation of cold chain facilities requires long-term professional service and circuit maintenance.