FOOD

PROCESSING
EQUIPMENT
BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY
Ma.Isabel Carpio - Chico,LPT,MAEd.
Instructor I
FOOD PROCESSING EQUIPMENT
Food processing equipment is an umbrella term referring to
the components, processing machines, and systems used to
handle, prepare, cook, store, and package food and food
products.

Although this equipment is primarily aimed toward the

transformation—i.e., increasing the palatability,
consumability, and digestibility—or preservation—i.e.,
extending the shelf life—of food, some pieces of
equipment are also employed to perform preliminary or
auxiliary functions, such as handling, preparation, and
packaging.
FOOD PROCESSING EQUIPMENT
Food processing equipment must conform to and support good
manufacturing practices. This means that it should not
contribute to adulteration and should help to prevent it. In
turn, those requirements mean that food processing equipment
must not offer places where dirt or microbes can hide, must
not corrode, must be easy to clean and must be easy to inspect
for cleanliness.

In practice, these characteristics mean that many pieces of

equipment are made from stainless steel, often have highly
polished surfaces and are designed to be disassembled easily,
preferably with simple tools. Some industries establish and
maintain voluntary standards for equipment design.
FOOD PROCESSING EQUIPMENT
Materials of construction for food processing equipment, process
piping and utilities should be homogeneous, hygienic (smooth, non-
porous, non-absorbent, non-toxic, easily cleanable, impervious and non-
mold supporting), inert (non-reactive to oil, fat, salt, etc.; may not
adulterate the food by imparting deleterious substances to it, nor affect
its organoleptic characteristics), chemical resistant (corrosion-proof; non-
degrading and maintaining its original surface finish after sustained
contact with product, process chemicals, cleaning agents and
disinfectants), physically durable and mechanically stable (resistant to
steam, moisture, cold, heat, the actions of cleaning and sanitizing agents;
resistant to impact, stress and fatigue; resistant to wear, abrasion,
erosion and chipping; not prone to cracks, crevices, scratches and pits,
unbreakable) and easy to maintain.
Types of Food
Processing
Equipment
 The food processing production cycle can be
broken into several stages, characterized by a specific
function and during which individual unit operations
are performed. For example, within the preparation
stage, the primary function is to prepare the food
material for further processing, and some of the unit
operations performed include washing and
separating.
Other secondary functions provide support to
the primary functions of the production cycle, such as
material handling and system control operations
which convey food materials between process stations
or maintain the required processing conditions and
standards, respectively.
Some of the most common functions by
which food processing equipment are
grouped include:

Preparation
Mechanical processing
Heat processing
Preservation
Packaging
Some of the most common functions by
which food processing equipment are
grouped include:

Preparation
Mechanical processing
Heat processing
Preservation
Packaging
Food
Preparation
Equipment by
Unit Operation
 Cleaning

Removes foreign matter and contaminants—e.g., soil,

oil, insects, skins, chemicals, etc.—from the surface of
raw food material via wet and dry-cleaning processes
Soak/floatation tanks (soaking)
Spray washers
Sterilizers
Ultrasonic cleaners
Air classifiers
Screening separators
 Grading

Closely related to, and often precluding, sorting

processes.
Assesses several characteristics of food matter (e.g.,
flavor, damage, skin color, aroma, etc.) to determine
the overall quality
Tungsten lights
Image processors
 Peeling/Skinning

Removes inedible or undesirable material to increase

the overall quality and/or appearance of the final food
product
Pressure vessels
Stationary/rotating blades
Carborundum abrasive rollers
Conveyors and furnaces
 Sorting

Operates similarly to and overlaps with dry cleaning

processes.
Classifies and separates foreign matter and
contaminants from raw food material based on a
measurable physical characteristic (typically size,
shape, weight, or color)
Disc separators (shape sorting)
Machine vision sorting systems
Mechanical
Processing
Equipment
 Size Reduction*

Reduces the average particle size of solid food matter

through mechanical processes involving compression,
shear, or impact force
Impact mills
Jaw crushers
mills
Cutting/Chopping
Homogenization*

Also referred to as emulsification

Reduces the average particle size and increases the
consistency of semi-solid and liquid food matter
Homogenizers
Emulsifiers
Mixing**
Also referred to as blending
Combines and disperses two or more components
into one another to achieve and maintain a
uniform mixture and/or an alteration to the
functional or aesthetic qualities of the food
product (e.g., texture)
Type of equipment depends on the form of the
food components—gas/liquid, liquid/liquid,
liquid/solid, solid/solid
Agitated tanks
Turbine mixers
Horizontal dough mixers
Drum Blender
Heat Processing
Equipment
(Preservation by the
Application of
Heat)
Baking
Similar to, and often referred interchangeably with,
roasting
Employs heated air (heated by convection, conduction,
and radiation)—and, in some cases, water vapor—to
heat and produce physical and chemical changes in food
material, such as texture or flavor
Assists in the preservation of food matter by destroying
microorganisms and reducing the amount of moisture at
the food surface
Suitable for producing bread, crackers, biscuits, and
other flour- based or dough-based products
Direct Heated Ovens
Batch Oven
Blanching
Employs heated water or steam to reduce the number of
microorganisms and inactivate undesirable enzymes
which can cause spoilage
Also cleans, removes excess air from, softens, and
improves the overall quality
Typically follows preparation operations and precedes
preservation operations, such as packaging, dehydrating,
or freezing
Suitable for fruits and vegetables
Blanchers
Dehydration
Employs heat to remove (i.e., evaporate) water from
solid, semi-solid, or liquid food material with the
intention of producing a solid food product with
sufficiently low water content
Increases the shelf life of food products due to the
reduced water content which inhibits microbial growth
and enzyme activity
Reduces weight and volume and/or transforms the form
of the final food product
Convection Dryer Freeze Dryer
Evaporation
Removes volatile solvents (typically water) from food
material by boiling to increase the concentration of
solid contents
Increases the shelf life of food products due to the
reduced water content, but also increases the rate of
chemical deterioration
Reduces the weight and volume of the final food
product
Typically precedes operations, such as crystallization,
precipitation, and coagulation
Suitable for liquid-based food products
Evaporator
Condenser
Frying

Employs heated (~160–180 °C) fat or oil to transfer heat

directly to food material
Reduces moisture content, forms a surface crust
(changes texture and structure), and inactivates
microorganisms which improves shelf life and overall
quality
Batch Fryer
Continuous Fryer
Food
Preservation
Equipment
by Method
Chemical*

Employs natural and non-natural chemical substances to

prevent or inhibit spoilage
Can change the pH and other qualities of food material
Natural
Salt (salting)
Smokers (smoking)
Acids (e.g., acetic acid, vinegar, etc.)
Non-Natural
Sorbic acid
Sulfur dioxide
Benzoic acid
Irradiation

Employs ionizing radiation to destroy microorganisms

and inactivate enzymes which cause spoilage
Little to no heating of food material
 Refrigeration** (Removal of Heat)

Reduces the temperature of food material to depress the biochemical and

microbiological processes of microorganisms and enzymes which cause spoilage
Helps maintain quality and characteristics of food material

Chilling (-1°C–8°C)
Chillers
Mechanical refrigerators
Cryogenic systems
Freezing (below freezing point)
Freezers
Mechanical refrigerators
Cryogenic systems
Chillers

Mechanical Refrigerator
Freezer

Cryogenic systems
 Water Reduction**
Reduces the amount of water in food matter in solid, semi-solid, or liquid food
material to inhibit microbiological and enzymatic process which cause spoilage
Drying
Convective dryers
Contact (conductive) dryers
Vacuum/freeze dryers
Solute Addition
Sugar
Salt
Concentration
Evaporators
Condensers
Convection Dryer
Vacuum Freezer
Packaging
Equipment
Food Packaging can serve several
functions, including:

Containment: Holds (i.e., contains) food contents until they are used
Protection and Preservation: Creates a physical barrier between processed
food products and physical, chemical, microbial, and macrobial variables
during storage, transportation, and distribution which can cause
spoilage, contamination, or loss of quality
Convenience: Enables food products to be portioned out (by weight or
volume) for easier consumer use, and stored, transported, and
distributed
Communication: Helps identify the food contents and indicate handling,
storage, and use instructions, as well as allows for an opportunity for
branding and marketing.
Printers
(e.g., flexographic, photogravure,
planographic, screen, or ink-jet)

Enables the identification of food contents and

the indication of handling, storage, and usage
instructions (e.g., ingredient list, production date,
barcodes, etc.)
Allows for branding and marketing (e.g., brand
name, logo, etc.)
Volumetric Fillers

Used to fill a set volume of the packaging

containers with liquid, paste, or small pieces of
solid food material
Net-weight/Gross-weight Fillers

Used to fill packaging containers with a specific

weight of liquid, paste, or small pieces of solid
food material
Seamers

Creates a double seam in filled food and beverage

cans
Form-Fill-Seal (FFS) Systems
Creates a double seam in filled food and beverage
cans
Checkweighers
Verifies that filled packaging containers are at the
required fill weight and removes underweight
products from the production line.
Design and Selection
Considerations for
Food Processing
Equipment
There is a wide range of food processing equipment available to satisfy the
various functions which are integral to the food and food processing
industries.

While individual pieces of equipment may have some distinctive

considerations—typically based on the specific functions and unit operations
which they perform—to keep in mind when designing and selecting equipment for
a particular food processing application, there are also a few factors an industry
professional or procurement agent can consider across the board to ensure
that their food processing equipment fulfills their needs.
These factors include:

1. Function

The particular function for which a piece of equipment is intended largely

determines the general type of equipment employed. For example:
Material handling equipment includes conveyors and tube systems
Preparation equipment includes sterilizers or wash systems
Heat processing equipment includes ovens and fryers
Preservation equipment includes freezers and dehydrators
Product distribution equipment includes wrapping and palletizing systems
These factors include:

2. Form

The form in which the food material being processed comes in significantly
influences the specific type of equipment employed as some food processing
equipment is better suited for one form over another.

For example, among material handling equipment, pumps are better suited for
transporting liquid food material, while conveyors are better suited for
transporting solid food material.
These factors include:

3. Hygienic Design
As the products produced by the food and food processing industries are
intended for consumption, the equipment employed to execute the necessary
processes and unit operations is designed with consideration to hygiene and
sanitation standards and regulations set by a variety of government agencies
and private organizations.
These standards and regulations outline the requirements and best practices
aimed towards ensuring the manufacture of safe food and protection of public
health and safety.
These factors include:
4. Sizing
There are several factors which help determine the optimal size for food
processing equipment, but ultimately, the goal is to balance the material and
resources used for each unit operation and the required production output.

Typically, processing equipment is oversized between 10–20% to compensate for

potential operational issues, such as equipment breakdown or demand
fluctuation, or environmental conditions, such as temperature or humidity
changes. However, depending on the production requirements of the particular
facility, multiple, small-sized equipment can also be employed to allow for
greater operational flexibility.
These factors include:
5. Construction Requirements

As indicated above, food processing equipment must be constructed with

consideration to hygienic design. Beyond this requirement, equipment must
also be designed and built to withstand the stress from the various mechanical,
chemical, thermal, and physical processes and unit operations of the food
processing cycle. Other construction requirements to keep in mind include:
Dimensional and weight restrictions
Facilitation of cleaning and maintenance operations
Use of standard vs. custom parts
These factors include:
6. Operational Characteristics

Food processing equipment is typically designed and built with a particular

function or unit operation in mind. However, the method in which these
functions and operations are executed can vary depending on the design of the
equipment, and additional components can be integrated to facilitate smoother
operation. Some characteristics of food processing equipment to consider
include:
Batch vs. continuous processing
Manual vs. automatic operation
Integration of analytical or quality control units
Integration of ergonomic or safety components
These factors include:

7. Cost

While it is necessary to choose equipment which effectively fulfills the

requirements of the food processing application, it is also important to
consider the overall costs to better determine whether the particular selection
is worth the investment. Some factors to consider when doing a cost-benefit
analysis include:
These factors include:

Construction Material: The majority of the cost of processing equipment can be

attributed to the construction materials as the raw materials typically used (e.g.,
carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum, etc.) can range between a couple hundred to a
couple thousand USD per ton. The materials chosen can also influence the cost of the
actual construction process, as different materials may have different handling and
fabricating requirements such as treatment procedures or higher precision machining.

Standard vs. Custom Equipment: As expected, custom-designed equipment is more

expensive than standard, off-the-shelf equipment. Therefore, if possible and suitable,
industry professionals and procurement agents should opt for the latter type,
especially for processing products such as pumps, heat exchangers, valves, evaporators,
distillation columns, and centrifuges.
 References:
Overview of Food Processing Equipment - Types, Applications, and Important
Attributes (thomasnet.com)

Food Safety Management: A Practical Guide for the Food Industry. Y. Motarjemi and
L. Lelieveld. ISBN 978-0-12-381504-0. 2014 Elsevier Inc.

Practical Design, Construction and Operation of Food Facilities. Peter Clark. eBook
ISBN: 9780080557779. Hardcover ISBN: 9780123742049
"The future belongs to those
who believe in the beauty of
their dreams."
— Eleanor Roosevelt