FOOD TECH - Manufacturing & Production Methods

FOOD TECH - Manufacturing & Production Methods

1. Production Methods

   • Chosen method depends on: number of products to be made; type of product; type and cost of equipment; cost of final product; numbers of workers available; skill of workers.
     • One-Off Production
       • DISDVANTAGES; more labour intensive; expensive; slow process; reduced profit margin
       • ADVANTAGES; higher quality ingredients; tailored to spec; made fresh; personalised; unique; made to order & budget; caters for special diets; specific.
     • Batch Production
       • DISADVANTAGES: too big batch can lead to good remaining unsold, wastes resources and money; estimating product demand can be high risk for food manufactures -depends on consumers and product needs; expensive to repair and maintain machinery; implementing HACCP can be expensive; initial outlay of money is very expensive; one fault on production line can lead to excessive food waste; power cuts can shut down production line.
       • ADVANTAGES: quicker than one-off, saving time and money in production costs; cheaper; ingredients and components bought in bulk; fixed production costs are spread over a large product range; quality product due to cinsistenc; reduced energy costs due to fixed production costs; HACCP controls safe working practises; equipment and labour cost altered to meet seasonal demand.
     • High Volume (mass) Production
       • DISADVANTAGES: initially very expensive; a bath size too big can lead to goods remaining unsold, wastes resources and money; regular, thorough maintenance control checks; implementing HACCP can be expensive - staff training, controls, monitoring and good manufacturing practise; initial outlay of money is expensive; one fault can lead to excessive food and energy waste; repetitive/dull work restricts recruitment of workers.
       • ADVANTAGES: HACCP controls safe working practises; small workforce required; automatic quality control leading to high quality products; reduced energy costs due to fixed production costs; CAD & CAM can help to lower the unit cost; consistent results; operates 24/7; production costs are spread over larger product range, lowering final product cost; ingredients and components are bought in bulk lowering costs; cheaper to produce large amounts of the same product; fast, efficient production due to manufacturing process being split into tasks and sequenced into assembly line using conveyor belt saving time and money in production costs.

2. Standard Components

   • They are pre-manufactured components used in the manufacturing of food products
   • Why?
     • saves time
     • reduces the risk of cross-contamination
     • Storage life may be improved due to use of preservatives
     • Quicker and cheaper to use
     • Nutritional quality may be improved = fortification
   • Disadvantages
     • Sensory properties and quality maybe different from customer expectations.
       • Ready-made sauces may contain flavour enhancers and preservatives whereas a homemade one would not.
       • A pie filling may contain less meat than a homemade one
     • Reduced nutritional quality
       • Highly processed food may have higher fat, salt or sugar contents to enhance sensory characteristics rendering the product unhealthy
   • They are reliable and are of consistent quality

3. Sustainability

   • Preserving the world's natural resources. Due to the rise in technology we now use more natural resources - these are likely to run out. In some parts of the world people are starving in other they are overeating. Food is the largest single factor affecting out Carbon Footprint. The food industry must: reduce waste, reduce water consumption, improve energy efficiency.
   • FOOD MILES - refers to the distance the food has travelled from source to plate. Think locally sourced, farm shops, farmers markets. Buying food in season means you are more likely to achieve low food miles.
   • REDUCE, REUSE, RENEW, RECYCLE, REPECT, REFUSE
   • ORGANIC
     • These standards require farmers to protect the environments, primarily by severely restricting the use of pesticides and avoiding the use of artificial chemical fertilisers. Instead organic farmers rely on developing a healthy, fertile soil and growing a mixture of crops. The world organic is defined by law.
   • Sustain
     • The alliance for better food and farming advocates and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, enrich society and culture an promote equity. They represent around 100 national public interest organisations working at international , national, regional and local level.
   • AFS (assured food standards)
     • an umbrella body for various different crop and meat assurance schemes. Standards require farmers to comply with UK laws about the environment, food safety and animal welfare. Member farmers can use the red tractor logo. AFS standards are not defined by law.
   • LEAF (linking environment and farming)
     • a scheme in which farmers audit their production systems and examine soil management, fertility, pesticide use and pollution control and management. Not defined in law.

4. Industrial Food

   • Processing Techniques
     • Advantages of treating foods
       • Improved safety through HACCP
       • Take advantage of seasonal gluts
       • Storage life increases - easier to transported
       • Mass production is cheaper
       • Can make ready-prepared foods and pre-manufactured components - benefits of convenience foods but usually more expensive.
       • Can add nutrients to foods
       • Helps people with allergies
       • Maximises availability of foods
       • Sensory properties altered
     • Techniques - common machinery characteristics
       • Greater capacity the domestic machinery.
       • Use of conveyor belts and pipes to transport ingredients
       • Use of calibrated scales
       • Wet and dry ingredients are stored separately to prevent cross-contamination
       • Time and temp controls are alarmed to prevent cross contamination and correct cooking
       • Operating costs , maintenance and energy costs are higher than for domestic equipment..
       • Machinery is regularly inspected
       • Made from stainless steel to prevent contamination, corrosion and aid cleaning. Must be robust.
     • Mixing & combining
       • Fully automated using CAM & CIM. Different attachments
     • Shaping & Forming
       • Rollers, cutters, mincers, stuffers, fillers extrusion machines. Adjustable cutter discs, interchangeable moulds - multi purpose machines.
     • Movement
       • Wire meshes or belts. Fully automated. Different sizes. Used for drying, cleaning, baking etc. Can withstand alkali, acid, heat etc.
     • Preparation
       • Fully automated using CIM. Made from stainless steel. Variety of sizes. Possible dust contamination with dry ingredients.
     • Storage
       • Large scale storage of dry and wet ingredients - safety monitored. Tanks can be jacketed for steam and water heating or cooling.
     • Dispensing
       • Fully automated using CIM. Different sizes. Made from stainless steel.
     • Cooking
       • Rapid heating systems that use CIM and time and temp control using CAM.
     • Temperature Control
       • Bench top, tunnel or chest freezers. Rapid cooling system using CIM and time and temp control using CAM.
     • Transportation
       • Bench top, tunnel or chest freezer. Temp controlled trailers.
   • Preparation Techniques
     • Blanching
       • Blanching is only carried out on vegetables before canning, freezing or drying
         • It is used to inactivate enzymes prior to further processing. Enzymes could cause flavour, colour or texture changes. To shrink the product. Remove surface bacteria. Improve taste/texture
       • It is a short heat treatment that uses water, steam or microwaves
       • Water blanching causes high nutrient loss through leaching
     • Mixing & Combining
       • Used to blend a range of ingredients to produce a uniform mix. Dried food is difficult due to different particle size.
       • Mixing machines
         • Powder & Particle mixers
           • Ribbon blenders & tumblers: powdered soups, sauce mixes and cake mixes. Agitation achieves a uniform blend. A ribbon blender has 2 propellers in a trough.
         • Liquid Mixers
           • Batters, sauces & soups. Irregular mixing pattern achieves even mixing and smooth texture
         • Dough Mixers
           • Pastes and dough. Z-blades evenly combine pastes and thick mixtures. Dough require powerful mixers.
       • DEMIXING: the blend of ingredients becomes less uniform as the process progresses.
       • LIQUIDS: Particle size more consistent but can separate out e.g. oil in water because they are immiscible this is overcome by emulsification
       • HOMOGENISATION: particle size is reduced to aid even dispersal and uniform mixing. Used for milk - no cream layer.
     • Size reduction
       • Food may be reduced or modified to allow for preparation, processing or preservation treatments. Used for ready-prepared foods (sausages or before juice extraction)
       • Grating
         • Cheese, Veg
           • Can be used in solid food items. Increased surface area aids mixing and combining processes
       • Shredding
         • Herbs
           • Food shredded before dehydration. Large surface are increases moisture loss.
       • Grinding
         • Grain, sugar, nuts, pepper-corns, lumps of sea salt, spices
           • HAMMER MILL - fragile material is shattered into small fragments. DISC MILL - rotating discs with studs break the product. PIN or BALL DISC - rotating plates or balls with rods and pins break the product. Cannot be used on fibrous, elastic or liquid foods as they rely on the fragility of the product.
       • Slicing/chopping
         • Meat, fruit, veg, other fibrous material
           • ROTARY CUTTNG KNIVES - very sharp with a mechanical slicing action. Safety guard prevents operation if the machine is set up incorrectly.
       • Dicing
         • Diced meat and veg for soups, dried products and ready meals
           • CROSS KNIVES - used to dice food. Safety guard prevents operating if machine is set up incorrectly
       • Milling
         • Wheat grain into flour
           • MILLING separates the endosperm from the rest of the grain; these small, fine particles are used in to production of semolina, pasta and cereals. During milling the nutritional content of the grain can be altered due to the extraction of different particles of the grain. The extraction rate is the amount of whole grain that is used (%).
       • Pulping
         • Fruits for jams and sauces
           • High-speed paddles pulp food to aid the extraction of juice or water before freezing
     • Separation processes
       • Cleaning
         • Dry Cleaning
           • Sieved or screened. Screens separate different size particles. Cheap and efficient but produces dust which could re-contaminate.
         • Mechanical Harvesting
           • Results in increased contamination. Continuous drum screen - efficient and reduces labour
         • Aspiration
           • Lighter particles are removed from food by air. Relies on food and contaminates having different weights.
         • Wet cleaning
           • Can remove contamination from chemicals. Muddy food can be pre-soaked, agitation can help to process. Spray washing: common. Water is pressure sprayed, the force cleaning and washing. Floatation washing: mechanical system that pushes food through different compartments (weirs). The food is forced under the water by paddles.
         • Peeling
           • The removal of the outer skin. Can also remove contaminates. Multi-functional machines can wash and peel or wash and spin.
       • Sorting
         • Food is sorted according to characteristics. Makes it easier to pack, store and transport
           • Sorting Characteristics
             • Size
               • Fruit & veg
                 • Raw food needs to be the same size to be mechanically processed, packaging and storage of food is easier, screens can be used to sort according to size.
             • Weight
               • Cuts of pre-packed meat, small veg, eggs, fruit, nuts
                 • Many fresh items are sold according to weight then packaged and labelled.
             • Shape
               • Fruit & veg
                 • Screens are used to sort according to shape. Round is a much easier shape to sort than any other.
             • Colour
               • Dried peas, coffee, rice, potatoes, onions, grain
                 • Natural colour variation is acceptable. Colour due to bruising, rotting and poor handling is unacceptable. Labour intensive if performed manually. An electronic system can be used with photoelectric cells to compare colour against a standard colour; rejected food is removed using a blast of air.
       • Grading
         • Food is separated according to quality.
       • Separates food from contaminates