Managing additive doses in personalised food

Personalised experiences form the heart of customer service and food will soon join this trend. Food will need to cater to individuals according to their health, personal and taste preferences, as proven with the increase in individually designed cakes and specially prepared muesli.

Precision is key

As a result, processing and food production companies will need to adjust to this by installing new technology and focusing on individual ingredients.

Small variations in additives or preservatives can entirely alter the taste and smell of a product. ViscoTec suggests the key to creating personalised food is ensuring the aromas, colouring and probiotics are all dosed precisely due to their high concentration.

The company therefore developed dispensers for liquid additives which can provide small quantities and have a deviation of less than ±1%. This precision does not necessarily limit the dosing quantities, which the company suggests can be easily increased and reduced by adjusting the speed of rotation of the dispenser.

Technological advantages

While piston technology has been used in the past for large transferring and conveying pumps, ViscoTec utilised the technology for high-precision dosing and filling tasks. It is the geometry of the pump technology that allows the necessary precision to create these personalised foods.

This dosing geometry promotes a constant volume of rotation per revolution. The direction of transport is changed by reversing the direction of rotation. The volume is therefore clearly defined by the number of angular degrees. This technique results in a pressure-stable, linear pump characteristic curve. As a result, users can make a clear statement about the ratio of rotation, time and flow rate which allows a guaranteed dosing accuracy of about 1% at the pump outlet.

A further benefit of this technology lies in the resulting conveying chamber, the volume of which remains constant during movement, even when filling solids-laden media and lumpy products.

In contrast to conventional filling technologies, the dispensing volume can be adapted during the filling process by adjusting the rotational speed. This means the dose can be changed without stopping the process for an extended period of time.

All hail hygiene

With food safety at the forefront of consumers’ minds, it is important that companies ensure processing technology maintains high hygiene levels at all times.

In the case of the dispenser, the modular construction allows it to be dissembled for automatic and manual rinsing and cleaning. In fully automatic filling systems, a common CIP or SIP system can be used.

The dispenser can be dismantled manually without the need for tools in just a few minutes and all components can be cleaned.

Whether it’s protein shakes or pastries, dispensers are crucial in managing doses of preservatives and additives, and catering for the increasing demand for personalised food products.