18 tonnes of meat a day: tempering instead of 18 hours of thawing
A sausage producer thawed blocks of pork, chicken and beef in open air for over 18 hours. A NutriTemp Batch microwave unit now tempers them in under 5 minutes with no water loss.
This case study is based on material from Sairem. Utily Solution is Sairem's exclusive sales and service partner in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Customer
A sausage producer in Colombia with around 200 employees, part of a large retail chain with hundreds of stores. It processes frozen pork, chicken and beef, about 18 tonnes a day and more in summer. At peak times production runs around the clock.
Challenge
Meat blocks were thawed in open air for about 18 hours. This had three drawbacks:
- bacteria: the block surface stayed in a warm environment for a long time,
- water loss: the meat lost around 6 % of its weight during thawing,
- delays: production had to wait for the meat, and 18 tonnes took three to four days to process.
The customer needed to bring 20–25 kg blocks from −18 °C to −2 °C, the right temperature for grinding.
Solution
Sairem supplied a NutriTemp Batch microwave unit with two sliding tables. While one table is being tempered, the operator unloads and reloads the other. Microwaves heat the block evenly throughout, so the surface does not start to thaw before the core.
Results
- Under 5 minutes per block instead of about 18 hours.
- 18 tonnes in one day instead of three to four days.
- No water loss: previously around 6 % of the weight dripped away.
- Savings of up to USD 2,700 a day, as calculated by the customer.
- Compact machine: it takes a fraction of the space thawing used to need.
To estimate what microwave tempering could save in your plant, try our payback calculator.
