APPLICATION
To considerably extend the shelf life of the product after packaging, while preserving its original freshly roasted flavour and aroma.

Who is interested and for what purpose:

• To roasted sunflower seeds producers (packaging roasted sunflower seeds in gas).
• To producers of packaged peanuts and other nuts (packing peanuts in nitrogen environment).
• To producers of packaged coffee (coffee packaging in Modified Atmosphere Packaging).
• To producers of other food products where the oxidation process has a negative effect on the packaged product

What is the purpose of pure nitrogen food packaging?

The removal of oxygen from a sealed product package to a certain residual concentration level is known to avoid oxidation and the rancid taste of the product. Also when packaged in nitrogen environment, with a certain residual oxygen level, the food can retain its taste and aroma for much longer.

The advantage of our technology

The packaging machines that are already on the market, which operate on the nitrogen flushing principle, give an insufficiently low level of residual oxygen in the product pack: 1-2% O2. This leads to auto-oxidation of the product and a loss of taste. Auto-oxidation is the process of primary oxidation of a product when new oxygen that has been molecularly bound in the product is released from the product, it further enhances the oxidation process.

Our technology and equipment make it possible to produce a product with a residual oxygen level of no more than 0.04-0.06% immediately after packaging, steadily in each packet. After a peak in concentration, the residual oxygen level in each package falls consistently to 0.00000000000000001% (10-14ppm). This acts as a barrier against autoxidation of the product.

Our customers confirm that roasted sunflower seeds packaged on this equipment are already significantly different the very next day compared to seeds packaged using conventional or nitrogen flushing technology. After one week, the taste corresponds to that of sunflower seeds which were roasted 4 hours ago. After 3 months storage, the seeds have a taste and aroma as if they had been stored for only 2 weeks. This is confirmed by the laboratory reports on the peroxide value test from the metrology services.

In addition, this equipment allows warm (not fully cooled) sunflower seeds to be packed in a nitrogen atmosphere. In this way, the preservation quality of the product is also improved. The packaging of warm seeds is not allowed in the classical packaging technology.

Operating principle

The roasted sunflower seeds before entering the dosing area pass through an airlock stage, where they are deeply vacuumed and purged with high-purity nitrogen several times in depth. This procedure allows oxygen to be removed from the outside of the seeds as well as from the inside in the space between the kernel and the husk.

The product is dosed and packaged in a sealed environment of high-purity nitrogen. Oxygen from the workshop space can’t get into the product packages.

How to complete the equipment?

– An oxygen analyser is needed for the whole production line. It can service all packaging machines and nitrogen generators online and, at the same time, switch over to quality control of previously packed bags.

– The nitrogen generator is selected on the assumption of 20 m3/h with a residual oxygen content of 0,02% for packing the sunflower seeds coming from the ovens with a total productivity of 400 kg/h.

– The packaging machine is selected with a certain reserve for the capacity of the seeds coming from the ovens. The reserve is needed to compensate for the loss of capacity of the packaging machine during a film change.

We also provide an upgrade service for our packaging machines that have been previously purchased and are already in production.

What makes our equipment different?

Our machines enable you to produce a quality product on time. This quality is ensured by the well chosen technology of the product (in general and in detail), the reliable design of the equipment and the quality of the installed components. With reliable technology and machines, you can hold your staff accountable for the quality and quantity of your products. Your employees will have no possibility of producing poor quality products and disrupting deliveries. Distribution, retail and the end consumer will be happy.

Packaging machine parameters

Nitrogen generator parameters

Oxygen analyser parameters