The manufacturer showcased two pieces of machinery at the Anuga Foodtec show in Cologne last week, which it said provide benefits such as minimal energy loss, protection of raw materials by a fast, direct heating method, optimization of aroma, colour and structure of products and thus increased quality of food.
The firm said that the new Stephan Combitherm CT 800, which uses direct steam injection technology, is designed for the efficient and economic processing of dressings, pureed food, baby food, spreads and paté.
Dorothee Klöpping, product manager for convenience food at Stephan Machinery, said the Combitherm can handle batch sizes of 800, 1,200 and 1,600 litres at the rate of two to three batches per hour.
She explained that the application of Stephan’s vacuum technology and the direct injection of energy into the product result in immediate and instantaneous heating, thus enabling gentle processing of ingredients, and the elimination of damaging processes such as burn-on.
According to Klöpping, high-speed dispersing and cutting tools, combined with a mixing element, are attached to the bottom of a tilted processing vessel within the Combitherm and are powered by variable speed drives to allow for the rapid cutting and processing of ingredients.
The equipment, she said, is also designed to be CIP-cleanable.
In addition to the new Combitherm, the manufacturer said convenience and dairy ingredients will be heated quickly and gently by direct steam injection over steam ports in the vessel bottom of its recently developed Stephan UMSK 24.
This equipment, explained Klöpping, can cut, mix, emulsify and/or heat food with capacity for batch sizes of up to 17 litres, and, depending on the application, the manchinery can handle up to 12 batches per hour.
Klöpping added that the Stephan UMSK 24 can also be equipped with a double jacket for indirect steam heating.