Linde LLC, a unit of the Munich, Germany-headquartered Linde Group, a leading supplier of industrial, process and specialty gases, has published a new informational white paper on the benefits of advanced cryogenic freezing systems used at food processing plants. Entitled “High-Efficiency Cryogenic Freezing for Food Processing,” the 12-page document is available as a free download via this link.
The white paper offers an overview of cryogenic technology and details its process advantages and a variety of solutions for efficient freezing including: tunnel freezers, individually quick freezing (IQF) freezers, immersion freezers, spiral freezers, immersion spiral freezers, impingement freezers, pellet freezers and cryo-mechanical freezing systems.
The technology leverages the extreme cold freezing power of food-grade gases – carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen (N2) – for processing: meat, poultry, seafood, prepared foods, baked goods, dairy and frozen dessert items, and individually quick frozen (IQF) products.
Cryogenic gases can freeze small or high volumes of food products faster than traditional methods, which delivers improved quality, higher throughput, quicker changeover rates, and often a saving in floor space and operating costs, according to Linde. State-of-the-art cryogenic freezing solutions include freezers with hygienic design and offer food manufacturers significant bottom-line benefits, including improved productivity and temperature control.
Linde has been providing cryogenic freezing expertise for decades across food industry sectors, including:
- Poultry: Cryogenic solutions can improve the speed and yield of freezing processes, for example, individual quick freezing (IQF), and reduce evaporative and dehydration losses on cooked and marinated products.
- Red Meat: Cryogenic freezing can efficiently process red meat products at high volume with low dehydration rates.
- Seafood: The rapid freezing process preserves texture and freshness while ensuring IQF products are more than 99% individually quick frozen.
- Baking: Cryogenic freezing preserves the entire structure of the baked or par-baked product and the high quality of dough.
- Prepared Foods: Fast in-line freezing and cooling protects the product’s flavor profile, and with the formation of smaller ice crystals, there is less drip loss and a higher quality product.
In the 2015 financial year, the Linde Group generated revenue amounting to EUR 17.944 billion (US $19.7 billion), making it one of the leading gases and engineering companies in the world, with approximately 65,000 employees working in more than 100 countries. Its headquarters in the United States is in Murray Hill, New Jersey.
