BOC, the worldwide provider of gases and vacuums to the food and beverage industry, has found a significant market for its newly launched flour chilling equipment for the bakery industry.
Bakers looking to improve product consistency by maintaining uniform and accurate ingredient temperatures have been turning to the BOC flour chilling system in increasing numbers. "Bakers love the fact that the technology produces consistent flour temperatures (+/- 1/2 degrees F) even in extreme heat," said BOC's Amy Ficon, marketing manager, bakery segment.
The flour chilling system, which can be installed on existing conveying lines or as part of a new system, is an integrated bulk ingredient chilling system that eliminates fluctuations in ingredient temperatures. The result is less waste, greater batch-to-batch consistency, reduced operating costs, and increased efficiency.
"Some of our customers are reporting as much as a I per cent yield gain and up to 58 per cent reduced waste in their products," Ficon said.
The system's fully automated cryogenic process also reduces, and often eliminates, the need for ice in dough formation. The programmable, self-regulating flour chilling system is particularly useful in the summer when flour is subjected to higher temperatures both during transport and while being stored in silos.
The BOC Group serves two million customers in more than 50 countries. It employs some 43,000 people and had annual sales over $6 billion in 2001.