Processing

Dairy Developments
at Anuga FoodTec
Anuga FoodTec, Koelnmesse’s triennial food and drink technology fair, welcomed
39,000 trade visitors from 146 countries to the German city of Cologne this 4-7 April.
New advancements in dairy processing and packaging systems featured strongly at
the show and following is a review of some notable exhibits in this category.

M
ILK processing technologies won three out of five fill, label, pack and palletise up to four different flavours
Gold Awards in the concurrent European FoodTec of drinking yoghurt or milk-based mix drinks
Awards, which were co- simultaneously, this filling line
organised by the German works by assigning the same
Agricultural Society (DLG). product (or ‘colour’) to every
Finnish dairy group Valio was fourth filling valve, thus saving on
recognised for its proprietary laborious pick work at the end of
method of eliminating lactose the line. The filler is synchronised
from milk to offer a product with with a bottle disinfection module
the same taste, fewer calories and that uses hydrogen peroxide to dry
more benefits. Alpma Alpenland sterilise containers and closures
Maschinenbau of Germany also before they enter the filling
took gold for its space-saving chamber for contact-free weight-
Formatic cheese portioning based filling. After capping, an
system that offers shape flexibility inline Sleevematic labeller offers
and hygiene. Enquiry No: 014 the option of applying different
Meanwhile, Krones was labels to four different filled
honoured for its cold aseptic containers. The entire line is rated
For aseptic treatment of milk and milk-based
“rainbow filler” jointly developed mixed drinks, Krones offers the VarioAsept at 20,000 bph.
with Molkerei Heinrich Gropper, flash pasteurisation system, which is designed Well-established in the soft
a dairy in Bavaria. Designed to as a shell-and-tube heat exchange unit. drinks and brewing sector, Krones

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has recently expanded its technical know-how into dairy applications,

believing that users will gain from its ability to integrate process
expertise into the entire filling sequence. The company now offers
process and packaging lines for milk, cream, milk-based mix drinks
and drinking yoghurt, with treatment choices of fresh, ESL and UHT
systems with full CIP capability.

Easier flow for viscous items and a process for lean yet APV’s LeanCreme system. Enquiry No: 015
creamy foods
Another highlight was the Vega VO28
EasyFlow, a new plate heat exchanger
developed by APV for heating, cooling and
pasteurising medium- to high-viscosity
products such as yoghurt, ice cream, fibrous
juices, egg and ketchup. This new design
features very few contact points on the plate,
a wide plate gap and diagonal flow to
maximise the flow stream rate and prevent
fibre hang-ups in flow channels. With better
irrigation and lower fouling risks, the plate
offers a longer runtime with the same
thermal efficiency.
Also new are patented EasyClip gaskets
and a High Performance Clamping System
that allows for rapid assembly of plate packs
without misalignment. APV offers the Vega
V028 with a manual frame as well as a new,
fully automated Binary-Drive frame with
easy opening and closing at the touch of a
button.
The search for better tasting yet healthy
products has a new solution in APV’s
LeanCreme process, which turns low-value
surplus whey into a protein concentrate that
can be used by dairies to improve taste and
texture in low-fat products. The process
combines ultrafiltration of whey followed
by heat and a special mechanical treatment
of the concentrate. The resulting LeanCreme
product has homogeneous protein particles
of similar size to milk fat globules (APV
says it looks and feels like coffee cream) and
has a neutral flavour and mouth-feel that
yields a milk fat-like texture to low fat
formulations.

Pasteuriser that’s low on energy

usage and high in safety features
In this era of peaking fuel prices, dairies
looking to lower their energy costs can turn
to the newest version of the Tetra Therm
Lacta pasteuriser, which developer Tetra Pak
says now consumes 12% less energy. This

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Packaging innovations at Anuga FoodTec

ELOPAK made the show its launchpad for a new perforation and sealed with
ambient packaging solution aimed at premium a longitudinal seam before
beverage products. Dubbed iCone, the package features delivery to the packer.
a gable-top with a reclosable cap that tapers into a There, the packs are
circular cone-shaped bottom. This design provides a individually lifted, opened
footprint that fits into a car cup holder and offers a firm up and pushed on to a
grip for the hand. mandrel. The base is
According to Elopak, consumers polled in the UK activated with hot air,
and France recorded very high interest and purchase prefolded and sealed with
intent for the iCone, with at least 78% stating that the specially shaped pressing
package is unique and different. Other tests had superior elements that give the
ratings for ease of handling, carton a stable curved-in
pouring, opening, reclosing, base. Next, the top is folded
stability, unbreakability and precisely along the grooves to guarantee exact formation
storage. The iCone comes in of the top after filling. The filling machine can run up to
various sizes up to a litre four lanes and produce 12,000 packs per hour. At the end
including a portion pack. of the line, up to 2,160 cartons (400 ml) can fit on one
Elopak offers two concepts Euro pallet.
for forming and filling the iCone: For consumers, the complete top perforation of the
an integrated single-block form- combisafe allows quick and easy opening (pictured above).
fill-seal machine, and a two- After use, the top of the carton can be folded down for
Enquiry No: 017
machine option with a separated storage in the refrigerator
carton cup former and filling
machine. The filler shown at Introducing the carton bottle
Anuga FoodTec has a nominal Moving beyond cartons is Tetra Pak, which introduced
capacity of 10,000 packs/h. the world’s first aseptic carton bottle (picture below).
Enquiry No: 016
Named Tetra Aptiva Aseptic, this ambient package for
still drinks, juices and dairy drinks combines a carton-
Autoclavable carton for chunky foods based sleeve with a plastic top and screw cap to offer a
Aiming to replace glass jars and tin cans, SIG distinctive alternative to plastic bottles. According to Tetra
Combibloc unveiled the combisafe, a heat-resistant carton Pak, this aseptic carton bottle system requires less than
range suitable for chunky food products to be sterilised half the capital investment of a comparable plastic filling
in an autoclave. The combisafe can pack products line, and offers operating economies that are 20-50% lower
containing chunks up to 40 mm in length, including compared to lines using HDPE and aseptic PET bottles.
vegetables, fruit, ready-meals, stews, Tetra Aptiva Aseptic is pitched
soups and desserts. The sealed carton at the fast growing on-the-go
can keep for up to two years without beverage segment distributed
refrigeration and without using through vending machines,
preservatives. convenience stores and super-
The recyclable carton consists of markets. The semi-cylindrical
inner and outer layers of polypro- shape package is topped by a wide,
pylene, cardboard and aluminium. easy-to-drink-from opening.
Filling is done using a sleeve system The package is formed and
in volume-flexible filling machines. filled on a Tetra Pak A5, a new
To guarantee safe sealing, the carton machine with two versions: a
sleeves are sealed ultrasonically after family pack unit for filling 10,000
the filling process. The printed and packs/hour and a portion pack
coated sleeves of combisafe are machine for up to 12,000 packs/
perforated with a complete top hour. Enquiry No: 018

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saving results from an energy hibernation function that deign offers easy access to
cuts water, steam and power usage during the sterile hot all vital service points and
water circulation procedure as well as short downtimes.
optimised CIP sequences.
The Tetra Therm Lacta is New modules for
designed for pasteurising low Asep-Tec filler
acid dairy products including Stork introduced a
milk, yoghurt, cream and ice number of new modules
cream mixes. A new built-in for its Asep-Tec linear
safety feature provides higher aseptic filler. The Asep-
pressure on the pasteurised Tec system is charac-
side, which minimises the terised by a very small
pressure drop gap that occurs defined aseptic zone
during partial discharge of which uses overpressure
the separator. Every produc- Enquiry No: 019 and laminar down flow to
tion step (process times and prevent cross contam-
volumes, temperature diffe- ination of bottles. There is
rences, CIP data) is recorded in the data log, allowing users now a higher capacity model able to fill 24,000 bph as
to pinpoint the exact time and location of any disturbance well as a version equipped for filling 2-litre milk jugs at
for isolation and review. 10,000 bph with an Extended Shelf Life profile.
The pasteuriser’s modular construction enables rapid Also new is an integrated Aseptic Neck Trimmer for
installation and commissioning of factory pre-tested units, each bottle row after external sterilisation. A cutting unit
as well as customisation to suit new production scans the bottle’s cutting edge both horizontally and
requirements and plant configurations. An ergonomic vertically using a guide. The cutting unit can be rotated

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Sanitary pumps and SSHEs from SPX

SPX PROCESS Equipment, which brings together the fluid processing technologies of Bran-Luebbe,
Waukesha Cherry-Burrell and Lightnin, offers the Waukesha Cherry-Burrell 200 Series Sanitary
Centrifugal Pumps for milk products and other beverages. These sanitary pumps are designed for
Cleaning in Place (CIP) and meet the hygiene requirements of the EHEDG (in the EU), the USDA
and 3A.
The pumps utilise commercially available seal choices, including cartridge type. A single size
seal fits all models. Their precise construction, including investment cast wetted parts, eliminated
problems caused by vibration, short bearing life, high NPSH requirements, high seal maintenance
costs or adverse operating conditions .
The 200 Series also includes a High Pressure Centrifugal Pump designed for recirculating service
in reverse osmosis and other membrane systems, and an Aseptic Centrifugal Pump, modified to
prevent contaminated air or liquid from entering the product zone.
Also from Waukesha Cherry-Burrell is the Votator II scraped surface
heat exchanger which can be mounted both horizontally
or vertically. A hydraulic device can be fitted to vertically
mounted Votators for automatic lifting and lowering. In
the lowered position, the scraper and cylinder can be
cleaned and inspected quickly. The scraper shaft is locked
to the cylinder without the need for tools using a V-Lock
which clamps it to the bottom scraper shaft head. Self-locking
scraper blades are arranged on the scraper shaft and can be
released and fitted without aids. Enquiry No: 022

tanks. According to the company, ultra-clean filling lines

based on this technology in Tara, an Israeli dairy, extend
the shelf life of products by 30%-100% and have gained
the attention of Swiss dairy Emmi and Greece’s Adams.
The risk of internal contamination (e.g. should a
Stork’s new bottle neck trimmer package break and sprays liquid over the filter material)
Enquiry No: 020
module for the Asep-Tec linear filler. is managed using the laminar flow principle, in which
the system is hermetically sealed in a sterile air
by 360 degrees, cut off and remove scrap automatically. environment that removes whirl flow zones. Fischer adds
A laser sensor detects and removes badly cut heads and that the Sterivent system, comprising a prefilter, a blower
bottles from the filler.
To prevent loss of quality in products such as vitamin- A Laminar flow filter for a filling installation.
enriched milk drinks, the Asep-Tec can now incorporate
a nitrogen doser that rinses the bottle with nitrogen after
decontamination to create an upward gas flow. After
filling, the bottle cap receives an additional nitrogen flush.
Closure options have also been widened to include HDPE
and PET screw caps in addition to aluminium cap seals.
The screw cap unit can be retrofitted to existing modules.

Laminar flow sterile air filter for extended

shelf life
The laminar flow principle is also seen by Fischer
Planning, an Israel-based process consultancy, as a
solution for filling safety and shelf life extension. Fischer
has developed a Laminar flow filter based on its SteriVent Enquiry No: 021
sterile air filtration technology for ripening and buffer

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and sterile HEPA filter uses only 0.25 kW and a single filter system is able to serve
multiple containers, using a pipe distribution system with shut-off valves on the
individual tanks.

New separators for cold milk and milk fat standardisation

Westfalia Separator has developed the PROCOOL system for cold
processing of milk using a centrifuge that separates 10,000-50,000 litres of
milk an hour from 4˚C-20˚C. The company says the PROCOOL system offers
a performance and separation efficiency unmatched by any other cold milk
separation machine.
The fully CIP-able PROCOOL separator
is also the first cold milk separator to use a
belt drive rather than gears, which reduces
service costs and energy consumption. The
same machine can also be used to treat warm
milk. An additional option is to combine the
PROCOOL separator with a Protein-Plus
System, which reduces the protein content in
the discharged solids. The protein is thus
retained in the skim milk to create a higher
value product.
For traditional
milk separation,
We s t f a l i a
S e p a r a t o r
introduces the
MSE 500 cold
milk separator
range (up to
50,000 l/h at 4-
20˚C) and MSE
230 warm milk
separator (20,000-
30,000 l/h). All MSE
machines feature a self-cleaning bowl with
total bowl discharge capability to reduce
downtime for cleaning. Belt drives are used
instead of gears to lower energy costs and
reduce maintenance time by two-thirds.
Standomat Prospec is a new standar-
disation unit that allows dairies to
continuously regulate not just the fat content
of milk but also measure and regulate other
milk constituents or supply additives such as
vitamins. Fluctuations in the feed capacity are
compensated for automatically, and different
versions are available for specific application
and regulating tasks.
The unit regulates fat and protein content
via light measurement of the properties of
transmission, fluorescence, scatter and
refraction.
Enquiry No: 023

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