La Ferme à Jules introduces baby carrots in France
Fast food in the French kitchen
La Ferme à Jules:
There is a massive contrast between French cuisine — which was added by UNESCO to its lists of the world's "intangible cultural heritage'' — and the American fast food tradition. Even so, it seems that the French still have something to learn from the Americans. This is demonstrated by La Ferme à Jules, a company that is making pioneering efforts to introduce French consumers to baby carrots. These small, snack carrots are a typical American product and enjoy huge popularity in the USA, but they were relatively unknown until recently in France. But now La Ferme à Jules produces and packages around 500 kg of baby carrots an hour. These carrots are on sale in branches of the major French supermarkets, such as Carrefour, Auchan, Monoprix, Leclerc and Lafayette.
La Ferme à Jules paid a lot of care and attention to the packaging of the baby carrots. “First and foremost, it had to be appealing”, says Jules Becquet from La Ferme à Jules. “The green cartons we use are handy and easy to present on the shelves, and are highly appreciated by the shopping public.” To produce the baby carrots La Ferme à Jules uses machines from Sormac, market leader in the area of production lines for baby carrots in Europe. “We held negotiations with a variety of potential suppliers”, explains Mr Becquet, “but our choice finally fell on Sormac due to the quality and reliability of the processing machines and the outstanding support they offer customers.”
CRR revolver peeler:
The Sormac line operating at La Ferme à Jules consists of a transport belt, a CRR revolver peeler, an inspection table and hydrocooler. The CRR revolver peeler is the perfect choice for baby carrots, as the distance between the peeling rollers is extremely small (< 4 mm) so that even the smallest carrots cannot fall between the rollers.
Hydrocooler:
Peeling means friction and friction is heat, which means that the product is warmed up during the peeling process. This negatively influences the flavour and shelf life. For this reason it is essential to cool the baby carrots as soon as possible after they have been peeled. This process takes place in a hydrocooler where the product is transported against the direction of the water flow. The water has a temperature of 3°C. The water that continuously recirculates through the machine is cooled in a separate cooling unit. A slide chain system transports the carrots through the hydrocooler. By adjusting the belt speed, the dwell time in the water and accordingly the cooling time can be regulated.
La Ferme à Jules is a company characterised by a clever and efficient way of working. The choice of this calibre of company for Sormac underlines the fact that Sormac machines comply with the very highest operational and quality standards.