Global demand for meat and dairy free plant based products has seen tremendous growth, with sales reaching an all time high in 2021 of £800M.
As plant based meat and dairy free product demand soars, and with the market growing over 74% during the past 3 years (source:plantbasednews.org), food manufacturers may be wondering how should plant based Meats and dairy free food be handled, and if they should be dealt with differently?
Plant Based Food Manufacture
Plant based foods can be crafted in a variety of ways once ingredients have been combined in mixer. One way is by extrusion cooking where thermal and mechanical forces are placed on food within a screw extruder to create shear, altering the protein structure and texture of food. This can create chunky meat like textures similar to those found in a thick fish fillet such as Salmon.
Other methods may involve a wet texturiser process which is used to add moisture in conjunction with starches or other fibres to alter a products texture. These methods can be combined with other processes such as dextrinisation (toasting) where heat is used to break down the sugar within starches, creating a toasted flavour as the food is browned.
Pumping Considerations
As food manufacturers look to transfer new blends of food into extruders, machinery or process what considerations should be given to pumping equipment?
Some blends of plant based foods can be drier than meat based alternatives meaning they are more difficult to pump. If their viscosity is so high than the fluid does not flow, then pump selection can become extremely limited, in particular if a mechanical feed is required to ensure the pump inlet remains flooded, clogging does not occur and that controls are in place to ensure that the pump does not operate without fluid – damaging itself.
The solid handling capability of pumps will need to be carefully studied to ensure that any soft solids remain intact or if any large solids or textures are ok with being compressed are handled appropriately. Similarly if any process trialed at pilot plant level, that the solution is scalable to meet increased demand at higher output.
As plant based ingredients are yet to meet industrial scale quantities, availability and most importantly price point, ensuring high value ingredients are metered and dosed accurately into process ensures full cost control, especially during a time where plant based foods remain more expensive than their meat counterparts and cost is ever increasing.
Flexibility to deal with reformulation is another key consideration– where the recipe for plant based meals can change suddenly due to key ingredient shortages as we have seen with sunflower oil, seasonality or simply changes in recipes or new adoptions in consumer taste. Whilst Milk traditionally thickens when mixed or pumped at high speed (Shear Thickening & Newtonian in nature), non dairy milks such as Coconut or Hazelnut Milk can be shear thinning and non Newtonian in nature.
Having the ability to handle fluids according to their rheology, and across a wide viscosity range will ensure any changes in fluid thickness or texture can be easily accommodated, future proofing your process.
All in all, the correct pump technology will be the pump which achieves your outcome, without compromise to the fluid or process at the lowest lifetime cost.
If you are looking to handle plant based or dairy free products, visit www.northridgepumps.com or contact us on 01773 302 660 to see how we can help.
North Ridge Pumps
- 01773302660
- sales@northridgepumps.com
- http://www.northridgepumps.com
- North Ridge House 3 Chrysalis Way Eastwood Nottinghamshire NG16 3RY GB
About us
North Ridge Pumps are an independent manufacturer and distributor of pumps. Having been established since 1998, we have a vast array of experience having become accustomed to supplying pumps for most processes.
We work within a range of industries both UK and Internationally, specifying pumps for a wide variety of applications from the transfer of corrosive and aggressive chemicals, to dewatered sludge, viscous grease, resin, glues, food and Seawater.
Our pumps range from standard centrifugal and multistage pumps, to immersed and process overhung solid handling pumps. We also supply a wide range of positive displacement pumps including Vane, Piston, Progressing Cavity and Peristaltic enabling us to specify more than one solution for your application, but also ensuring the majority of applications remain within our reach.
We offer the following services:
Technical support – We know at times pump selection is difficult. Pump selections are made with confidence by technical sales engineers who understand your process, ensuring equipment is engineered beyond your needs.
To select the correct technical solution for your requirement, longevity of design is prioritised. If there are existing issues you need assistance with, we work with you to solve these which could be high maintenance costs, frequent service periods, repeated equipment breakdown leading to lost revenue, inconsistent flow rates, clogging or where pumped product is inconsistent.
Application experience – Due to our 20 years of application experience we work with you to ensure our pumps operate according to your desired application. Our experience means we have most likely provided a solution for a similar process previously. With proven results, we know how to achieve your outcome sooner.
As our pumps are completely configurable, we design pumps with materials according to your requirement, and to your required duty point. Pumps are engineered specifically for your process whether they be baseplate mounted, within a mobile frame or in kit form with couplings, hoses, and dispensing nozzle.
Industry knowledge – We have a thorough understanding of a range of industries through experience from supplying the offshore oil and gas market, to paper mills, chemical plants and food manufacturers to name a few.
We not only understand the importance of downtime but also what each process requires and how small design improvements specific to the nature of your industry and application can reduce downtime, facilitate maintenance and improve longevity.
If you have a process or application you require a pump for, or a process which requires improving, get in touch to see how we can help.
What we do in a nutshell
Pump Specification & Supply
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