SCHAAF TECHNOLOGIE GMBH - INNOVATIVE APPLICATIONS FOR FOOD EXTRUSION TECHNOLOGY

Nice textures & selected flavours presented in attractive shapes The most common extruded products are a wide variety of savoury, direct expanded snacks. Everybody is familiar with products like “Cheese balls”, “Peanut Flips”, “Potato sticks” etc. Raw-materials: Most savoury snacks are made from corn. Sometimes other raw-materials like potato powder, wheat or rice grits are used to impart an identifiable and attractive taste to the base product. Pulses or beans may be added to cater to distinctive local tastes. Similarly materials with high fiber content may be added to increase specific nutritional values. Process: The process can be divided into 3 stages. Pre-extrusion - Single or a homogeneous blend of various raw-materials is moisturised to a pre-determined level with water or water containing materials, prior to extrusion. The moisturisation is done either in batch mode during blending or continuously.

Innovative shapes combined with taste and nutrition With increasing consciousness about healthy eating, cereals, especially extruded cereals, are becoming a standard feature in many households. “Rice-crispies”, “Fruit rings”, “cocoa cereal flakes” are some of the more common extruded cereals. A cereal like product in single piece bite size positioned for consumption alone and as a snack is a sweet snack. Raw-materials: Unlike many single cereal based conventional products, extrusion can be used to produce multi-cereal products with better nutritional balance. Similarly special nutritional requirements of specific group of consumers can be met through suitable selection of the raw-materials. Extruded products can be made in attractive shapes to increase their acceptability among children and introduce the concept of health with fun. Process: Production of cereals is usually a multi-stage process.

Sweet creamy fillings in a moulded, crisp extrudate shell The latest in sophisticated products from direct extrusion are the co-extruded, centre filled products. In these products a soft filling with a pumpable viscosity is metered continuously, using a suitable pump, into an extruded pipe, simultaneously while it is being extruded. A special design co-extrusion die is used for this purpose. The result is an extruded pipe filled with a creamy mass. This pipe can then be moulded into various shapes continuously with the help of special moulding rollers. Raw-materials: It is important to choose a proper combination of the extrudate raw-materials and the filling mass in these kinds of products to ensure that they combine harmoniously in the final product to give a compatible eating experience to the consumer.

From baby cereals to soup components and more... For many years now, cooking extrusion technology has been used in the production of numerous instant cereal products, including cereals for feeding small children. The usefulness of extrusion technology as an instantising process has been proved beyond any doubt. Extrusion technology is not only economically beneficial in the production of instant cereals; it also allows for continuous production processes while ensuring a high retention of the product’s nutritional values and excellent microbiological characteristics. For these reasons, extrusion technology has found increased application in the production of instant cereals for feeding small children. The process of cooking extrusion is competing with conventional methods of manufacturing such products, especially roller drying, and consequently the advantages and disadvantages of these two technologies have been subject to intense discussion.

Long-lasting staple products Though food-extrusion is often associated with "fun" products like snacks and breakfast-cereals in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, colours and flavours targeted to children, the technique is also employed for some staple foods. One such product category is that of "flat-bread" or "crisp-bread". "Flat-" or "crisp-bread" is essentially an extruded strip that is cut into specified length and dried to a low enough moisture level to enable a long shelf life under ambient conditions. The advantages of the extruded flat-bread are - Option of using various blends of different cereals to achieve desired taste, texture and nutritional value Long shelf life without special storage environment Easy transportation and use for different occasions Diverse uses; can be eaten with various toppings, or asa sandwich with a filling in between two slices.

From traditional product technologies to completely original product concepts Schaaf has been at the forefront of extrusion technology in developing practical and easily manufacturable products that have an instant appeal for consumers. The attraction of these products is perhaps that they can be easily identified as traditional or known food products whilst having a certain novelty that makes the consumer wonder "how did they manage to make this product?!" A special product might be a well-known product that is currently made using a process that has limitations in terms of investment, production capacity or perhaps a very complex production process. When a similar product can be manufactured using extrusion technology, it is termed a special product. It must be noted, however, that no alternative technology can ever duplicate the processes of another technology exactly. Products made using different processes will always reveal some differences between them.