Demand for premium food and beverage products around the world continues to grow and that is encouraging specialist startups to eye up the market.
To cater for the smaller business looking to bring innovative products and zero-alcohol beverages to the supermarket shelf, Flavourtech, a world leader in the development, design and manufacture of technologies for dealcoholisation, aroma recovery, extraction and concentration, has been working on miniaturising its systems.
“Going smaller can be a challenge but the engineering team did a great job in redesigning each system from the ground up,” says Flavourtech’s director of sales and marketing Paul Ahn. “We made these changes after listening to smaller, specialised companies who wanted to enter the market, and having smaller systems would allow them to do that.”
Ahn says consumers today are no longer satisfied with standard offerings.
A drive to live healthier lifestyles combined with social media’s influence on heightening desire for originality and unique experiences, is penetrating the ready-to-drink (RTD) beverage sector and fuelling low-alcohol and no-alcohol beer, wine and spirits.
“The beverage market is bubbling with innovation right now, which is very exciting to see,” says Ahn. “Now, Flavourtech’s unique systems that support the premiumisation and dealcoholisation of commercial products produced by multinationals can also be used by startups and scaleups.”
He adds that the miniature systems are also ideal for universities and research institutes to introduce students to technologies they will use on a larger scale upon joining the workforce.
Introducing Flavourtech’s small-scale models
The four technologies below are now available as small-scale models with Flavourtech’s engineering team working on the miniaturisation of the company’s remaining technologies as well.
1. The Spinning Cone Column (SCC)
The SCC is a thin-film vacuum distillation column designed to extract and recover volatile compounds, such as aromas and flavours, using steam. Due to its unique internal design, high mass transfer efficiency is combined with the ability to process clear liquids, viscous products or slurries containing suspended solids, differentiating the SCC from conventional distillation technologies, such as packed columns.
Source: Flavourtech
The technology implements short residence times and the ideal operating temperature for each product, to efficiently recover superior flavours, aromas and extracts, while at the same time maintaining the natural characteristics of the raw material.
Common applications of the SCC include aroma recovery during instant coffee production, simultaneous flavour and soluble solids extraction for RTD tea and coffee production and extraction of natural flavours from fresh fruit.
It is also used for aroma recovery and preservation during production of fruit and vegetable juices and purees, dealcoholisation and alcohol management of wine, beer, cider and spirits and deodorisation and flavour management of dairy products.
The new smaller model, known as the SCC100, has a throughput of 25-115 L/hr*, making it ideal for universities, R&D departments and small production runs. Three model types are available:
- The SCC100-C : for clarified extracts and juices;
- The SCC100-W : for dealcoholisation of alcoholic beverages; and
- The SCC100-S : for slurry processing that may include coffee, tea, fruit and veg puree or pulp
* Depending on feed product characteristics and applications.
2. The Centritherm® Evaporator
The Centritherm® evaporator is a thin film, spinning cone evaporator whose unique design, develops the thinnest liquid film possible in any evaporator. The liquid takes barely a second to pass over the rotating contact surface, yet in this brief time receives all the heat it needs to evaporate the product to its final concentration.
The Centritherm® evaporator is a compact unit particularly suited for the concentration of heat-sensitive, valuable and viscous products. Its short residence time results in minimal to no effect on the product’s colour and active constituents and its low operating temperatures ensure that no heat derived flavours are produced.
Common applications of the technology include high quality tea and coffee concentrates, premium fruit and vegetable concentrates, solvent removal from botanicals and concentration of vitamins, enzymes and active ingredients.
The Centritherm® evaporator is available in a small-scale model, known as the CT1, which has an evaporation capacity of 50kg/hr* making it suitable for universities and research institutes.
* Depending on feed product characteristics and application.
Source: Shutterstock
3. The Resin Adsorption Column (RAC)
The growing interest in zero alcohol beverages has prompted Flavourtech to develop the Resin Adsorbing Column (RAC). This technology has at its core, the principles of adsorption and desorption, and can be positioned downstream of the SCC when producing zero alcohol beverages. The RAC effectively “traps” aroma compounds within the alcoholic flavour condensate recovered by the SCC and ‘releases’ them as a non-alcoholic aqueous solution. This solution can then be added back to a de-alcoholised base creating a flavoursome zero alcohol beverage without the need to add external flavours.
The miniaturised RAC technology is the RAC1, which is suited to work straight after the SCC100-W during production of zero alcohol beverages. “Both the SCC100-W and RAC1 are ideal for wine or beer research institutes working on no-alcohol projects,” says Ahn.
4. Aquaporin’s ESSENCE go
The ESSENCE go is a compact and versatile solution for working with Aquaporin’s Forward Osmosis membranes. This laboratory-scale system allows universities to conduct trials and streamline data collection via a user-friendly interface and with low energy usage. The technology lends itself to the concentration of aromas captured using the SCC100, as well as other sources of aroma, such as evaporator condensates.
Supporting talent development
Flavourtech is encouraging universities and research institutes to partner with them to give their students access to the same advanced technologies used in modern food and beverage companies.
“These smaller systems allow researchers and students to study and optimise processes for capturing natural volatile compounds, offering valuable insights into aroma retention and flavour enhancement,” says Ahn.
“In addition, each compact, skid-mounted system has the ability to process multiple products as well as being easy to install, use and maintain with minimal infrastructure requirements. Ultimately, Flavourtech’s small-scale systems help bridge academic research and real-world commercial applications, empowering the next generation of food scientists to develop superior, high-value products.”
Source: Flavourtech
Calling food and beverage businesses to Flavourtech’s pilot facilities in Australia, the Netherlands and the US
Flavourtech welcomes potential clients to make use of their pilot plant facilities in Griffith, Australia; Wageningen University in the Netherlands; and Kansas City in the USA (at Scan American Corporation).
These global locations each house Flavourtech’s state-of-the-art processing technologies and offer trials for demonstration of process performance, validation of new product concepts, and optimisation of formulations prior to full-scale production.
Each facility is supported by qualified and experienced technical staff who assist in designing and running trials to achieve specific project objectives. Conducting a paid pilot trial with Flavourtech allows companies and researchers to gain practical insights, minimise risks, and make informed investment decisions.
Innovation in food and beverage products is accelerating, and the winners will be the brands using the latest technologies to provide customers with the most delightful and healthy experiences.
“We really look forward to being able to expand the businesses we work with by offering our world-leading technologies on a small-scale as well as working with universities and research institutes to shape the future of the food industry,” says Ahn.
Download the brochure on Flavourtech’s small-scale SCC100 to learn more and book a trial.
