Continuous production of food grade products
Production of animal proteins in Europe
One of our customers is an international producer and marketer of highly functional collagen proteins for the food industry. In the production of animal proteins, the last process step consists of drying viscous material. Hence, the customer was looking for a solution that could turn a very pasty product into dried powder.
The challenge:
Turn animal by-products into high-quality food ingredients
The customer carried out R&D on their product as well as pilot plant tests at ANDRITZ to find a stable and reliable solution. They found out that a so-called thin-film contact drum dryer was the answer to their quest. Test work has proven this dryer to be the appropriate choice of technology. A very thin layer of the product to be dried is applied to the outside of a rotating cylinder (drum). This drum is heated on the inside by steam. When in contact with the heated surface, the liquid evaporates very quickly from the thin product layer. After almost one complete rotation of the drum, the remaining dried product is scraped off the drum surface with a sharp knife, forming flakes that are then ground into protein powder.
Our solution:
Highly efficient and well-controlled drying process
ANDRITZ has a widespread reputation in the food industry and offers a full range of processing machinery for the production of high-value products. In particular, the drying process must be carried out as gently as possible without strong mechanical or thermal impact. We have designed an innovative solution that is especially suitable for processing edible raw materials into protein products for human consumption for pet food.
Viscous raw material is best dried using a contact drum dryer. The heated steam on the inside of the drum body condenses and the moisture is removed continuously from the drum. As such, the largest possible surface area remains available for condensation of the steam. Steam heating provides uniform temperature distribution over the drum surface, which results in a consistent product quality. The system is a closed loop. As the drum rotates and is heated on the inside, the product dries on the outside of the drum surface.
Because of the continuous, indirect drying method and the short retention time of the product at high temperature, virtually no heat damage will occur. Also taste, smell, and texture quality of the product are guaranteed.
Results:
Strong growth thanks to high-quality end product from ANDRITZ Gouda dryer
The customer had been looking for a reliable process for drying animal proteins. Their objective was to obtain a consistently high-quality product and gain a significant share of the market. Pilot plant tests took place in collaboration with ANDRITZ and the first drum dryer was ordered and installed successfully.
After a few years the customer expanded his production facility, including ANDRITZ Gouda’s advanced drum drying technology again. The new facility is FSSC 22000 approved and is able to produce animal protein using the most up-to-date production techniques. Business is going very well.
