In food processing, a company’s quality control serves to ensure and maintain the requirements imposed on the products. To meet consumer expectations food safety is not only required during the manufacturing process but the quality of the raw materials is also crucial. Continuous inspection of incoming raw materials are a prerequisite for a consistently high quality of the end product.
Graduate student Jennifer Franz has developed a new inspection procedure during her work at the German food producer Lebensgarten GmbH. With the help of sieve analysis the company can now reliably ascertain the fines and dust fractions of incoming cereal flakes; these have a negative influence on the mixing and packaging process of muesli. The dust fraction consists of particles < 500 microns and prevents tight sealing of the packaging by sticking to the welding seam. Another negative effect occurs during the production of so-called “crunchy” products. Crunchies are crisply baked cereal flake products; by adding honey, for example, the ingredients are formed into a compact mass and are then baked. The higher the dust fraction, the more crumbly and fine-pored the consistency of the crunchies becomes. Separating the flakes into individual fractions by sieve analysis reduces these negative effects on the product quality by allowing reliable quality evaluation.
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The Retsch AS 200 analytical sieve shaker series can be used in the quality control process of raw materials, interim and finished products as well as in production monitoring. The controllable electromagnetic drive offers an optimal adaption for every product. Sharp fractions are obtained even after very short sieving times.
With its all-digital controls and calibration certificate the AS 200 control is indispensable for all users who attach importance to precision and operational convenience and need to comply with the guidelines of the ISO 9001.
