Hazeldene Foods, United Kingdom; leafy vegetable processing line 2 tons/hr.
The British lead the way in Europe when it comes to convenience foods. Demands regarding the hygiene, freshness, shelf life, flavour, appearance and packaging of pre-processed fresh produce are therefore very high. In order to comply with these standards, Hazeldene Foods Ltd. in their new factory in Wigan, opted for a Sormac lettuce line, which dries lettuce thermally.
After the lettuce or other leafy salad greens have been cut and washed, the drying process starts with gentle, mechanical de-watering. The moisture content of the lettuce is lowered using dry, cool air. This drying process is done in a Sormac air-drying tunnel LDT. The cut lettuce 'floats' between two mesh belts in an upward airflow. The air used is first cooled to remove as much moisture as possible, before being slightly heated to ensure it can absorb the moisture from the leaves. The system used in the Sormac air-drying tunnel LDT is extremely suitable for delicate leafy salad vegetables to achieve a low moisture content.
With the lettuce line developed for Hazeldene Foods, Sormac demonstrates that even in a production environment a moisture content of the dried product of less than 1% can be reached. With no damage at all to the product. The lettuce still looks field fresh! The performance of the machinery installed by Sormac in Wigan has met with an enthusiastic response in England: “Thanks across the water to Bert Haffmans and all the Dutch guys at Sormac without whom we would not be able to wash at 2.5 tons per hour as we are today”, says Alan McDiarmid, Managing Director of Hazeldene Foods Limited.