Food Manufacturing Africa Q1 2021

FEB 2021 • APR 2021 Vol. 11 • No. 1

FOOD Manufacturing Africa

Powerful solutions

for full line integration in meat processing MARKET WATCH Top trends that impact the future of food processing

DAIRY FOOD Beat the cold chain with these ambient solutions

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES New categories with novel flavours & better-for-you ingredients

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FOOD Manufacturing Africa

CONTENTS

FEB 2021 • APR 2021 Vol. 11 • No. 1

7

13 MARKET WATCH “Unforeseen disruptions experienced in 2020 prompted F&B producers to future-proof their businesses. Focusing on expediting time-tomarket, food quality and safety, supply chain resilience and the creation of omni-channel models will place companies in the strongest position to embrace and capitalise on future opportunities.”

NEWS

PepsiCo partners with Beyond Meat for plant-based innovation

New website for Hiperbaric Global partnership impacts water process treatment

A new era in food plant design

A coronavirus superstar

Distell wins fair labelling case against SAB

Polarvision celebrates three years

10

INDUSTRY TALK

hat does the future hold past Covid-19?

W Syspro celebrates the factory of the future A third way to minimise COVID exposure

14

MEAT, FISH & POULTRY

Ishida’s slack belt improves efficiency Powerful solutions for full line integration Innovation drives the market for processed & meat alternatives

Strong systems ensure production safety

21

DAIRY FOOD

Beat the cold chain with ambient solutions

22

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

Make novel flavours work for you

Labelling that puts sustainability first

Demand for healthier beverages skyrockets

26 BEVERAGE PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY

18 MEAT, FISH & POULTRY Clean label insights: The fil-rouge driving innovation in processed & meat alternatives

Dairy and juice filling – on the same line

28

ROBOTICS

Streamlining food delivery

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX Cape Food Ingredients................................23..........................www.capefoodingredients.com Coperion..........................................................22..........................www.coperion.com/food-extruders Emirates SkyCargo........................................OBC.......................www.skycargo.com Ishida ..............................................................15...........................www.ishidaeurope.com Omron Electronics .......................................28..........................www.industrial.omron.co.za Polyoak Packaging........................................30..........................www.polyoakpackaging.co.za Print a Label...................................................IFC.........................www.printalabel.co.za

Savannah Fine Chemicals..........................19..........................www.savannah.co.za Shanghai Dase-Sing Packaging Technology Co ..............................................29..........................www.dasesing.com Sidel..................................................................27...........................www.sidel.com/supercombicompact Syspro .............................................................11...........................www.za.syspro.com TNA Packaging System SA .........................IBC........................www.tnasolutions.com

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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EDITOR’S COMMENT

EDITORIAL Editor: Maryke Foulds +27 (0)11 715 8012 maryke.foulds@newmedia.co.za Layout & Design: Naresh Budraj ADVERTISING Sales Executive: Anita Raath +27 (0) 82 976 6541 anita.raath@newmedia.co.za

Now is the time to celebrate Africa’s processing potential

Sales Executive: Carla Melless +27 (0) 83 260 6060 carla.melless@newmedia.co.za

A significant driver of local economies on the African continent, food processing has the potential to create supplier linkages for millions of smallscale farmers and elevate rural incomes across East and Southern Africa.

Italy: Ngcombroker Giacomo Rotunno +39 370 101 4694 g.rotunno@ngcombroker.com

D

EMAND FOR FOOD has never been greater, but small and growing processors often have difficulties producing high-quality affordable and nutritious products that meet food safety standards and regulatory requirements due to a lack of technical and business knowledge and investment.

Africa’s food processing industry holds huge potential for growth. According to reports, it is anticipated that the value of food purchased in East and Southern Africa will grow seven-fold by 2040. This market is ripe for the picking.

Unforeseen disruptions experienced in 2020 prompted F&B producers to futureproof their businesses. Turn to page 13 now for Phil Lewis’ five predictions that will drive the factory of the future.

Marel’s poultry processing systems are known for high yields, reliable performance, ease of operation, low cost of ownership and excellent maintenance models. Find out how the company can assist in retrofitting existing plants, turning them into state-ofthe-art processing facilities on page 16.

Even though it is a non-scientific term, ‘clean label’ has nonetheless been accepted by the food industry, consumers, academics and even regulatory agencies. On page 18, we find out why this trend is now considered the new normal in F&B manufacturing.

Africa’s dairy market is tipped for growth, but first manufacturers must overcome the spoilage factor to maximise sales. The good news is that according to the latest market forecasts from Euromonitor, volume sales of dairy products, excluding milks, will grow an average of 3.1% year-on-year up to 2025.

Such an exciting time in the beverages space! We place the spotlight on Cape Food Ingredients’ range of novel flavours for the alcohol industry, recyclable labelling options from CCL, and how consumer demand for healthier beverages continues to skyrocket. All this from page 22.

I hope you enjoy this edition of Food Manufacturing Africa, the first of the year! If you have any comments or suggestions to the team, please don’t hesitate to contact me at maryke.foulds@newmedia.co.za.

We love hearing from you.

Happy reading,

Sales Executive: Càndida Giambò-Kruger +27 (0) 71 438 1918 candida.giambo-kruger@newmedia.co.za

INTERNATIONAL SALES Germany/Austria/Switzerland: Eisenacher Medien Erhardt Eisenacher +49 228 249 9860 info@eisenacher-medien.de

Taiwan: Ringier Trade Media Sydney Lai +886 4 2329 7318 sydneylai@ringier.com.hk CONTRIBUTORS Phil Lewis CIRCULATION Circulation Manager: Felicity Garbers felicity.garbers@newmedia.co.za PUBLISHING TEAM General Manager: Dev Naidoo Production Manager: Mandy Ackerman Art Director: David Kyslinger JOHANNESBURG OFFICE New Media Publishing, Ground floor, Media Park, 69 Kingsway Avenue, Auckland Park 2092 Tel: +27 (0)11 877 6111 Fax: +27 (0)11 877 6198 POSTAL ADDRESS PO Box 784698, Sandton, Johannesburg 2146 Published by New Media a division of Media24 (Pty) Ltd MANAGEMENT TEAM MANAGING DIRECTOR: Aileen Lamb COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR: Maria Tiganis BRAND STRATEGY DIRECTOR: Andrew Nunneley CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER: Venette Malone HEAD OF HR: Ruth Shogoe CEO: MEDIA24: Ishmet Davidson HEAD OFFICE New Media House, 19 Bree Street, Cape Town 8001 PO Box 440, Green Point, Cape Town 8051 Tel: +27 (0)21 417 1111, Fax: +27 (0)21 417 1112 www.newmedia.co.za

Food Manufacturing Africa is published by New Media, a division of Media24 (Pty) Ltd quarterly and circulates to executives in the food and beverage industries. Views expressed in this journal, other than where specifically stated, are not necessarily those of the publisher.

The editor welcomes for publishing consideration news items, press releases, articles and photographs relating to developments in the food and beverage industries. No responsibility is accepted should contributions be lost.

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Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

NEWS

From one

brave team to another…

Thank Thankyoyou u to toeveryone everyone in services manufacturing and an essential d essential serv ices for keepithe machines ng t he machines for keeping running run and shelves stocked, duringthe the heves sto cked, durin COVID-19 V I shutdown. th e

You are the unsung heroes!

Our #PurplePeople salute you!

South African journal for food and beverage manufacturers

FOOD Manufacturing Africa Journal for food and beverage manufacturers

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2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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FOOD Manufacturing Africa

2021 DIARY February 2021

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3 – 5 FRUIT LOGISTICA Berlin, Germany www.fruitlogistica.com

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Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

April 30 – 1 April - Agrofood Nigeria Lagos, Nigeria www.agrofood-nigeria.com 1 – 3 Thifmex Indonesia Tangerang, Indonesia www.indomexexpo.com 2- 3 International Conference On Nutrition And Food Sciences New York, US www.waset.org 7 – 8 Food Safety Technology Summit Online www.foodsafetytechnologysummit.com

NEWS

POLARVISION CELEBRATES THREE YEARS

IN 2017, THE frozen vegetable market was predicted to grow at an average CAGR of 5% from 2018 to 2025. In response to this predicted industry boom, Bühler developed the Sortex FA PolarVision. Three years on, all the major players in the industry have Sortex technologies installed in their IQF lines.

“Frozen fruit and vegetable processors can feel certain of world-class performance when placing Sortex FA PolarVision optical sorters in their processing lines, whether after freezing, before the packing line, or bulk-to-bulk,” explains Stefano Bonacina, global head fruit & vegetables at Bühler. The technology offers a 1 200mm adjustable UHMW-PE chute and was launched in 2017; followed by the FA1, with a 600mm chute for smaller capacity processors. T LED-Xenon lighting and a PolarVision detection system combines two dedicated technologies – PolarCam and InGaAsHD – to spot all types of foreign material in frozen fruit and vegetable applications, including dark- and light-coloured plastics, wood, glass, snails and cardboards. The FA range also pushes boundaries with a hygienic design that is not only practical but also offers superior access and cleanliness. •

Hiperbaric launches

new website

PepsiCo partners with Beyond Meat to create plant-based products THE JOINT VENTURE is called The PLANeT Partnership and will develop, produce and market snack and beverage products made from plantbased protein. It will leverage Beyond Meat’s technology in plant-based protein development and PepsiCo’s marketing and commercial capabilities. “Plant-based proteins represent an exciting growth opportunity for us – a new frontier in our efforts to build a more sustainable food system and be a positive force for people

and the planet while meeting consumer demand for an expanded portfolio of more nutritious products,” says Ram Krishnan, PepsiCo’s global chief commercial officer. PepsiCo has prioritised increasing its offering in its portfolio to meet growing consumer demand for food and drinks that fall in the better-for-you category. Plant-based products have gained particular momentum during the pandemic as people are watching what they ingest more closely. •

GELITA ACQUIRES

MAJORITY STAKE IN SEIJEL THE COMPANY ATTAINED 65% of the shares in the Turkish gelatin producer SelJel; the remaining 35% of the shares remain with the founders of the company. With approximately 6 500mt of edible, pharmaceutical and technical gelatin, SelJel is the first Turkish producer and supplies not only the national market but also international customers.

“We are delighted that we have agreed. SelJel complements Gelita perfectly. All their products have Halaal status, which helps us to meet the growing demand for these products,” says Dr Franz Josef Konert, CEO of Gelit AG. The joint venture is part of the company growth strategy to meet demand for gelatin, and halaal bovine gelatin. This is an important requirement not only in Islamic states but also in large parts of Asia to extend market share in this growth region. Since 2010, the product range has been expanded to include edible gelatin and later also pharmaceutical gelatin, all with Halaal status. •

THE WEBSITE OFFERS an intuitive browsing experience, with specialised content and a more interactive design. Detailed information on HPP technology, a non-thermal technology for the preservation of food and beverages with a longer shelf life and guaranteed safety, can be found online. HPP applications range from meat, beverage, seafood, and dairy products to guacamole and avocado-based products, salsas and plant-based products, and baby food and fruit purees. The application also includes ready-to-eat (RTE) meals and pet food products. One of the strengths of the web is the wide selection of resources, for both HPP and HIP technology. Web visitors can now stay up to date with high-pressure technology by downloading free informative resources ranging from flyers, whitepapers and case studies to videos, on-demand webinars and blog articles written by industry experts. •

Solenis and Diversey sign global partnership agreement

MANUFACTURERS OF SPECIALTY chemicals Solenis has signed a global partnership agreement with Diversey, a leader in the hygiene, cleaning and infection prevention industry. Diversey is set to become Solenis’ new distribution partner for its complete portfolio of water and process treatment chemicals to the F&B industry with immediate effect.

“The combination of Solenis’ extensive portfolio of water treatment chemistries, equipment and technical expertise with Diversey’s cleaning and sanitation solutions will be a great asset to the industry,” explains John Panichella, Solenis CEO. “We look forward to strengthening our commitment and providing value through a holistic approach to our food and beverage customers globally.” •

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

7

NEWS

SAVE WATER, NOW THE REPLENISH AFRICA Initiative (RAIN) helped to ensure billions of litres of water was given back to communities and replenished in nature during 2020. Funded by The Coca-Cola Foundation, RAIN funded five major projects in South Africa to help restore priority catchment areas by removing thirsty, invasive alien plants, while creating valuable employment opportunities for women, youth and families by supporting water-related projects.

Five projects received $1.25m in grants from The Coca-Cola Foundation in 2019 and have collectively cleared 3 400 hectares of thirsty, invasive alien plant species, which will help replenish an estimated 1.5bn litres annually for the next 10 years.

Most of these strategic water sources are located in remote areas, with limited economic or skills development opportunities. In addition to the environmental benefits of these projects, they also focused on creating jobs, upskilling individuals, and providing support and training for sustainable economic opportunities.

Collectively, these projects created 389 jobs in the rural, priority catchment areas.

Across Africa, Rain positively impacted more than 6 million people through a diverse range of water-based initiatives by the end of 2020. Over the past decade, RAIN has positively impacted at least 250 000 women and youth and returned 18.5bn litres to communities and nature through water, sanitation and hygiene programmes as well as watershed protection.

As climate change disrupts the water system, affecting drinking water supplies, sanitation, food and energy production, The Coca-Cola Foundation and its local implementing partners are collaborating to facilitate strategic investments in South Africa’s key watersheds.

These efforts will pay dividends with the optimisation of the country’s water supply into the future. •

EXCLUSIVE, INFORMATIVE, SECURE AND SUSTAINABLE

Liquid gold NAMPAK LIQUID CARTONS scooped two gold medals at the 2020 Institute of Packaging South Africa Gold Pack Awards during a first-ever virtual ceremony held in October 2020.

The company was awarded a gold medal for its development of the Spar two-litre Pure-Pak milk carton in the Best in Beverages: Non-alcoholic Packaging category. The carton also achieved a gold medal in the Best in Paper Packaging category.

“Nampak brought together an idea by Spar with liquid carton board by Stora Enso and execution by Woodlands Dairy to see the launch of the first Natura Life gable top carton in South Africa.

This achievement showcases our commitment to sustainability, and we look forward to producing award-winning, planet-friendly packaging in the future,” says Quinton Swart, Nampak group executive: Paper and Eastern Africa. The Spar twolitre Pure-Pak milk carton was recently revamped.

It is 100% recyclable and made from 87% renewable sources. The carton board communicates organic values while running on existing filling lines without modifications in machine settings. The strength of the unbleached board results in a lower weight, thus further reducing the carbon footprint. The new carton closures have better pouring functionality and are bio-based, which means they are derived from plant-based sources and fully recyclable in existing South African plastic recycling streams. •

Multivac is celebrating its 60 year anniversary in 2021, and is marking the occasion with an informative series about current market trends and innovations.

The packaging specialist is using the Multivac Summit 2021 to initiate a new series of events on all aspects of food processing and packaging, which includes face-toface events as well as virtual concepts.

Among the main topics will be sustainability

Tech fights and kills

99.9% of coronavirus

& digitalisation, automation, solutions for the meat processing industry, solutions for bakeries, as well as packaging solutions for hand-crafted producers.

The opening is marked by two events on the topics of sustainability & digitalisation and solutions for the meat processing industry, which take place in Wolfertschwenden, Germany each starting on 8 March and 25 March 2021. Further information, as well as the opportunity to register, can be found at: https://link.multivac.com/summit2021

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Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

DAIKIN’S PATENTED STREAMER technology successfully inactivates more than 99.9% of the novel coronavirus after irradiating the virus for three hours. Using a type of plasma discharge featuring an innovative air purification technology that stably generates high-speed electrons, its oxidative decomposition capability is much higher than the conventional plasma discharge (glow discharge). When combined with air components, these high-speed electrons have a capability for powerful oxidative decomposition that continuously removes odours, bacteria, and indoor air pollutants such as formaldehyde. •

NEWS

DISTELL WINS ENFORCEMENT OF FAIR LABELLING AGAINST SA AN ORDER OF South Africa’s Western Cape High Court interdicted and restrained South African Breweries (SAB), owned by AB InBev, from distributing, marketing or selling two Brutal Fruit Spritzer variants with non-compliant labelling and advertising. In 2020, Distell lodged a formal complaint with South Africa’s Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) in respect of the Brutal Fruit Apple Spritzer product, given that it was labelled, advertised and promoted in a way that represented itself as an alcoholic fruit beverage, described as an ‘alcoholic fruit blend’ when it is in fact a maize-based ‘ale’.

The ARB ruling on 27 August 2020 found that these Brutal Fruit ready-todrink (RTD) products, which are popular with younger female consumers, have been promoted by SAB in “a way that is misleading consumers”. The High Court order was made on 10 December 2020, and restricts the use of labels that convey the Brutal Fruit products as ‘alcoholic fruit beverages’. It should rather be

correctly labelled as ‘ales’ (in line with the Liquor Products Act, 60 of 1989).

SAB had to stop using the non-compliant labels on or before 18 December 2020, and had to with immediate effect remove or withdraw all marketing and advertising in respect of the Brutal Fruit products. This advertising included all television, radio, billboards, websites, social media, press, print media and in-store advertising and promotional materials in their immediate control.

Distell commented, “We are pleased with the outcome of this matter.

These Brutal Fruit ready-to-drink products have been promoted in a way that is misleading consumers. This also disadvantages local competitors who produce and sell authentic ‘alcoholic fruit beverages’. The company believes in strong and healthy competition to support consumer choice, balanced with transparency about what’s inside their drink to build trust and ultimately brand equity.” •

END-TO-END

FOOD PLANT DESIGN ASTRATEK MANUFACTURING ENGINEERS offers a range of innovative services to the food industry with specific emphasis on hygiene, food safety and costeffectiveness. Astratek is the brainchild of Peter Grobler, who has over 35 years’ experience in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) manufacturing operations.

Grobler assembled a team of specialised engineers with experience in a variety of African manufacturing contexts to design state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities, as well as operate and optimise existing facilities.

The team provides an end-to-end service offering tailored to the client’s manufacturing needs.

This offering is comprised of full engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), plant design and construction, outsourced plant operations and plant optimisation strategies.

The team has worked on FMCG plants specialising in the production of a variety of products, such as: baked products, including designing a brand-new par-baked sourdough bread production line; dairy; prepared meals; confectionery and snacks; beverages and bottled water; spices and condiments; household and personal care; and fishing and processing.

Grobler explains, “We design facility layouts using operational modelling techniques to ensure the smooth flow of materials, product and people. This includes the design of services and utilities such as electricity, water, fuel, steam and condensate and compressed air. These are often neglected areas which can increase profitability through cost-saving, as well as ensure companies are stewarding valuable resources such as water and energy more responsibly.”

Astratek is particularly proud of their strong food safety and occupational health and safety expertise.

“We have an intimate and hands-on understanding of hygienic plant design principles. To reduce complexity and minimise risk, we use proprietary risk assessment tools to stop problems before they happen,” Grobler states. As an added assurance, Astratek is a member of the European Hygienic Engineering and Design Group (EHEDG), thus having access to the latest standards and manufacturing techniques to manage any product safety concerns. •

NAMPAK REPORTS

R283M OPERATING LOSS THE GROUP POSTED a loss of R4.3bn for the year

the DivFood business, which falls under the

ended 30 September. CEO Erik Smuts attributed

company’s metal cluster; and R423m in the

the loss mainly to impairments related to

company’s plastics cluster.

goodwill at Bevcan Nigeria and assets at Bevcan Angola, Plastics South Africa and DivFood.

“The group’s results were also adversely

Smuts says weak economies, reduced economic activity in key markets owing to the pandemic and the impact of currency

affected by significant currency devaluation of

devaluation in Angola impacted heavily on

the Zimbabwe dollar and hyperinflation,”

the company’s profitability. The ban on the

Smuts explains.

production and sale of alcohol in South Africa

Total impairments of R4bn included an

resulted in Nampak not selling beverage cans and

impairment of R2.2bn of Bevcan Nigeria’s

ends to brewers, nor drums for bulk

goodwill; and an asset impairment of R1.2bn in

alcohol exports.

Angola owing to depressed consumer demand,

The lack of social events reduced sales during

resulting from the significant fall in the oil

strict lockdown and closure of borders also

price, lagging wage inflation, changes in pricing

impacted the company’s businesses in Angola

dynamics, COVID-19 and other risks, as well as an

and Nigeria, while the Zimbabwean operations

increased weighted average cost of capital.

suffered from hyperinflation factors. Nampak will

In South Africa, lower expected cash flows

not be undertaking capital expenditure projects,

and a higher weighted average cost of capital

except for those that have been legally committed

resulted in asset impairments of R187m in

to at this stage. •

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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INDUSTRY NEWS TALK

What is the future of packaging post-COVID-19?

Industries on the frontline during 2020 endured significant challenges. As a $900bn-a-year industry worldwide, what does the world of packaging look like now? Food Manufacturing Africa asked Raymond Dube, MD of Nampak, to tell us.

A

T THE START of the pandemic, packaging manufacturers had a difficult juggling act maintaining employee health and safety and managing disruptions to supply chains, while trying to navigate the demands of evolving market conditions. While research is still not clear on the risk of the virus spreading through packaging, safety precautions in getting products from the factory floor to consumers had to be implemented.

At the Nampak Liquid Cartons plant in Isithebe, KwaZulu-Natal, stringent food safety and hygiene standards were already in place, but these were further enhanced during the pandemic.

BULK-PACKAGED BUYING As the severity of the pandemic became apparent, initial consumer reaction in many countries was a wave of panic buying. Some seemed illogical (such as #toiletpapergate in Australia), but much of it focused on long-life products such as dry, tinned and frozen goods.

While excessive panic buying seems to have subsided, there has been a sustained demand for groceries as consumers choose to avoid restaurants and eating out due to safety concerns. As disposable income takes a hit due to economic conditions, consumers are also opting for bulk-packaged goods, which offer greater value for money than single-serving items.

SMALLER SIZE FORMAT The other side to consumers being squeezed financially in the current economic climate is that buying less in smaller sizes can stretch budgets further. Smaller size cartons cater to those whose disposable income is measured in the short term, and who buy on a day-today basis. Retailers who want to add value to their customers’ spending power can also use smaller size cartons in combination deals, such selling one litre mageu, a loaf of bread and a chocolate for a discounted sum.

Pre-COVID, many Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies and retailers were faced with slimmer margins, with this pressure ultimately passed onto the packaging converters. New formats in packaging include smaller, lightweight

10

designs that increase filling efficiency and volume density, while offering shelf appeal.

THE RISE OF E-COMMERCE With the onset of lockdown, retailers were forced to shut their doors, leading to a shift towards online shopping. Consumers increased their digital engagement, buying products through e-commerce channels.

The retail focus is now on getting products safely to consumers, where packaging must withstand the rigours of transportation through resistance technology, as well as undergo sanitation processes. Retailers must minimise the risk of product loss or damage to reduce the potential of financial losses and product returns.

While some consumers will return to physical retail stores, once normality resumes, for others we could see a longerterm change in shopping habits. Many packaging designs will need a major update, especially if they were originally intended for traditional retail channels.

“sustainability has become a key motivator, with brands showing their commitment to the environment through cleaner packaging materials and ` new designs”

SUSTAINABILITY VS HEALTH AND HYGIENE Concern over the environmental impact of products remains key. For consumers, sustainability has become a key motivator, with brands showing their commitment to the environment through cleaner packaging materials and new designs. Liquid cartons are fast becoming a favourite among consumers and manufacturers due to the renewable attributes, recyclable nature, manoeuvrability, aesthetic appeal and convenience.

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

With the demand for eco-friendly packaging, manufacturers must ensure it is reusable, recyclable, or compostable in its current form; or if recycled, capable of being transformed into other products. For example, paper from liquid cartons once recycled can be made into corrugated boxes; the plastic and foil linings can be turned into roof tiles.

Similarly, consumers increasingly demand hygiene-assured items and single-use wrapped items. These new practices extend to the packaging industry as well. Packaging design must ensure the minimal viability of the virus, which could significantly influence packaging material preferences.

One instance of the shift in more hygienic packaging is that of traditional sorghum beer. Distributed in large plastic vats for consumption at shebeens and taverns, the beer is then decanted using plastic scuds.

If these are not cleaned properly after each use, they are at risk of transmitting the virus.

Sharing the beer among many people through the same vessel also carries health concerns, and open beer drums that aren’t monitored and sealed are susceptible to abuse and meddling, putting drinkers’ lives at risk. To solve these problems, tamperproof conical cartons that are sealed and available in single-portion sizes are gaining popularity – both retailers and consumers can trust that the beer inside is of high quality, safe and hygienic to drink.

The next normal will put packaging designs in the spotlight as the evolving megatrends reshape the business. Consumer and regulatory pressure to transition to a more circular economy will continue.

Spearheaded by the producer responsibility organisation Fibre Circle, awareness of liquid beverage carton recycling in South Africa is about to get a major boost. Winning designs will have to address the needs of the online channel, sustainability, and hygiene while taking pre-, present and post-consumer factors into account. •

Nampak – www.nampak.co.za

INDUSTRY TALK

The inflection point for the factory of the future 2020 has been a year that has seen unprecedented disruption for most industries due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Amid the pandemic, the world could not afford for manufacturing and distribution to grind to a halt.

B

EFORE THE SHIFTING point of the pandemic, businesses opted to offshore operations to drive cost and efficiency control. On home ground, these businesses did not need to invest in assets or innovation. The shop floor was driven by manual inspections, manual recording and disconnected processes.

MOBILISING THE REMOTE WORKFORCE As social distancing became the new normal, entire workforces needed to connect as well as collaborate remotely. The perception in the manufacturing sector is that factories are heavily dependent on operators to keep machines running and it’s simply not possible for resources to work remotely.

MANAGING SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTIONS Up to 60% of businesses were impacted by supply chain disruptions during the pandemic. This in turn affected

their ability to support their customers through the pandemic. In response to supply chain disruptions: •4 2% of businesses stated that they will nearshore or re-shore manufacturing operations.

•5 6% stated that they are already investigating dual sourcing and other initiatives to reduce supplychain risk.

• 37% of companies were unable to provide the remote work capabilities to employees that were required.

• 73% of businesses stated they would need to invest in capabilities to facilitate remote working.

WHY? When digging deeper into the reasons behind supply chain disruption, 29% agreed that the disruption of material supply was due to disruptions in materials transiting through affected countries. Additionally, 43% stated

they had highly-integrated supplychains that were disrupted due to the impact on the raw materials from the country-of-origin.

In response to supply chain disruptions 42% of businesses stated that they will near-shore or re-shore manufacturing operations. 56% stated that they are already investigating dual sourcing and other initiatives to reduce supply-chain risk.

THINK FORWARD Businesses have come to realise that in order to overcome supply chain disruptions, their business operations need to become more agile moving forward. Industry-built technology solutions will deliver industry specific functionality for manufacturers and distributors to optimise and simplify operations, stay current and in control. •

Syspro – www.za.syspro.com

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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INDUSTRY TALK

There is a third way

to minimise COVID -19 exposure There is nothing normal about what some people are calling the “new normal“. Humans are gregarious. For millions of years, we have eaten together, celebrated together, and played together.

It’s time to get back to that “old normal.”

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HE MAIN WAY SARS-Co-2 spreads, in fact the way most coronaviruses spread, is through the air. An infected person coughs or sneezes and aerosolised droplets are inhaled by an otherwise healthy person.

There are two primary methods for minimising exposure to the virus recommended by the various Centres for Disease Control: wearing a mask or face covering over your mouth and nose, and social distancing.

In addition to these two widely publicised methods is a third, fairly new, yet rarely mentioned method: Cleansing the air.

One effective way to cleanse the indoor air around us is with far-UVC light at 222-nanometer wavelength. This short wavelength on the far end of the ultraviolet spectrum is not harmful to humans.

“We are leveraging this very technology in the form of a suite of sanitising products that use far-UVC 222 light to inactivate viruses (including SARS-CoV-2) and bacteria in the air and on surfaces. Our products adhere to standard regulatory and industry guidelines for recommended exposure limits,” Conrad Kullman, Far-UVC director explains.

Far-UVC 222’s longer wavelength brother, UVC 254, has been disinfecting the surfaces of operating rooms for decades. UVC 254 is very effective at killing drug-resistant bacteria and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2.

Unfortunately, UVC 254 is not safe for

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“Far-UVC 222’s longer wavelength brother, UVC 254, has been disinfecting the surfaces of operating rooms for decades. UVC 254 is very effective at killing drug-resistant bacteria and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2.

Unfortunately, UVC 254 is not safe for humans.

Studies have shown that it can, over time, cause skin cancer and cataracts”

humans. Studies have shown that it can, over time, cause skin cancer and cataracts.

What difference do 32 billionths of a meter make? Surprisingly, a lot. At 222 nanometers, drug resistant bacteria and viruses are destroyed just as effectively as at 254 nanometers.

And here’s the best part: far-UVC 222 is not harmful to humans or pets. Far-UVC 222 cannot pass through the outer layer of our skin or tear the layer of our eye.

According to a recent study by Hiroshima University, far-UVC 222 destroys SARS-CoV-2,

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

which is approximately 120 nanometers in diameter. The outer dead layer of your skin is 100 times thicker than that.

HOW CAN FAR-UVC 222 CLEANSE THE AIR? These excimer lamps can constantly scrub the indoor air around us, allowing us to go back to concerts, sporting events, and everyday life. One way to clean the air is by installing far-UVC 222 lamps in overhead ceiling downlights or in a cylinder (Sterilon Flow) standing on the floor of your home or business.

If we install these lamps everywhere, can we ditch masks? Absolutely not. Did we stop wearing seatbelts when airbags became ubiquitous? Far-UVC-222 is another powerful weapon in the fight against this pandemic and all other viruses and bad bacteria.

“What about good bacteria?“ you may wonder. Yes, it is true that this technology will kill that too. But that is no different than washing your hands with hot water and soap.

Think you are too small to change the world? Look what a single-cell virus did to us in just a few months. Far-UVC-222 is small too, yet it has the ability to make us all safer during the pandemic. •

Far UVC Africa - www.faruvcafrica.com.

MARKET WATCH

5

Predictions

for the factory of the future

Unforeseen disruptions experienced in 2020 prompted F&B producers to future-proof their businesses. Focusing on expediting time-to-market; food quality and safety; supply chain resilience and the creation of omni-channel models will place companies in the strongest position to embrace and capitalise on future opportunities. By Phil Lewis.

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PERATIONAL EXCELLENCE IS driving successful outcomes across many of these initiatives, as firms look to optimise resource efficiency, whether people, energy or water. Precision is becoming imperative coupled to technologies such as IoT critical in minimising waste while maximising output.

WHAT DOES THE FUTURE LOOK LIKE FOR FOOD PRODUCERS? Prediction 1: Cloud… There’s little doubt that cloud is set for huge growth as a means of creating robustness and agility. Frankly, there is no other way when you look at what the business is asking for. It’s crucial in fully capturing data from IoT devices and the extended supply chain. There’s little point in having temperature readings in a structured ERP database that sits safely within the company’s firewalls.

A big advantage of cloud is having this kind of technology at hand as a service instead of having to do a lengthy IT project to implement something that will not scale.

Cloud also represents an opportunity to implement changes faster opposed to having to do technical migration projects which often require teams to take a step backwards before being able to move forwards.

Prediction 2: Omni-channel… Food producing companies have seen a huge shift in demand, with home deliveries taking precedence over restaurants and supermarkets. This trend is unlikely to snap back to pre-pandemic levels as consumers have simply become more used to ordering their food online. Being omnichannel makes the business less vulnerable and able to take a larger piece of the market.

Prediction 3: Industry 4.0 tech… Despite the need to become more efficient and reduce food, water, and energy waste, only a limited amount of food processors claim using IoT, with a staggering amount have no plans whatsoever.

These findings could be explained by the fact that until now, we have seen some experiments in isolated domains, such as image recognition in inspection equipment, IoT devices in farming or in production lines.

Yet there appear to be few examples of IoT being used widely to drive operations. For example, production machines have sensors to capture a lot of data like temperatures and other quality parameters, but all data remains in the machine and is lost and meaningless after the production run.

Product recalls are one of the greatest financial risks food and beverage companies face. Yet research shows that no firms claim to be completely digital for track and trace and quality management. The good news is that in 2021 more food producers will have paved the way by having a digital platform in place to capture data and connect this to the transactions in their ERP system.

Prediction 4: Data driven… A digital platform makes it possible to use IoT in a more holistic way. The first benefit of this is that faster and more targeted recalls will be possible, with the ability to identify and analyse the root cause of the issue immediately. The second is that data can be used to drive decisions and create a smarter company. A good example is having insight into the inbound overseas shipments of crops, not only with regards to their estimated time of arrival, but also the

About the author: Phil Lewis is Infor VP Solution Consulting for the EMEA.

storage conditions during transportation so that quality and use before dates can be predicted more accurately. This extends the control of the supply chain outside of the four walls of the factory and uses data from farm to fork to increase quality and productivity, reduce food waste and minimise food safety risks. In turn, this can turn challenges into a competitive advantage.

Other applications are using image recognition and machine learning (ML) to dynamically determine the quality of received ingredients and using that to determine the purchase price. Something which would have a big impact on food safety would be the use of IoT sensors to check whether equipment is clean, with the results triggering a cleaning order to avoid contamination risks, which brings us on to the next big trend 2021 is likely to see.

Prediction 5: Transparency to the consumer…

Consumers require more in-depth information about products to help drive their purchasing decisions. It’s important to demonstrate the efforts being generated into sustainability credentials to consumers. We are seeing a growing number of retailers putting pressure on producers to provide information.

In 2021 and beyond we will see that this will be expanded to more product categories and used to differentiate producers and prove the sustainability of the supply chain. This means extended control of the supply chain from farm to fork and identifying whether the crop is GMO-free, what kind of crop protection has been applied, and other factors.•

Infor - www.infor.com.

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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MEAT, FISH & POULTRY

New belt design

enhances grader performance Ishida Europe has enhanced its market-leading Flex-Grader for fresh poultry and meat with the introduction of a new high accuracy weighing platform which allows for accurate grading and improved overall equipment effectiveness (OEE).

“… the Slack Belt’s hygienic construction to IP68 certification is fully protected against water ingress, making it ideal for harsh, high care environments; the belt can also be easily removed for cleaning

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HE SLACK BELT weigh bed incorporates a single belt mechanism which eliminates product transfer issues to and from the weigh bed. This creates a more stable weighing environment for even greater accuracy. Besides, the weigh bed features a scraper that removes any product debris, which ensures a more consistent and accurate auto zeroing of the load cell.

The Slack Belt’s hygienic construction to IP68 certification is fully protected against water ingress, making it ideal for harsh, high care environments; the belt can also be easily removed for cleaning. A windshield is provided as standard to ensure protection against environmental factors during the weighing process.

“Working closely with customers is key to understanding their specific challenges, in particular tackling areas of inefficiencies,” explains Ciaran Murphy, Ishida Europe’s

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The Flex-Grader unit

business manager EMEA – quality inspection control. “For the FLEX-Grader, our focus was to develop a solution that helped to minimise the impact of product giveaway and food wastage, while maintaining hygiene standards.”

The Ishida Flex-Grader offers a high-speed and accurate solution for the grading of fresh poultry and meat to a variety of different specifications, including specified weight, minimum weight or number per pack. It can also deliver target batching with tolerances and priorities, including product overlapping.

An intuitive touch screen remote control ensures ease of set up and changeovers.

The Flex-Grader features a modular design that is easily integrated into existing processing and packing lines which can be modified and adapted for changing requirements. It can incorporate between four and 32 collection bins in a variety of configurations including single, double and twin line layouts, handling pieces from 100mm to 400mm in length at speeds from 175 to 500 per minute.

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

As part of Ishida’s ability to supply complete turnkey lines tailored to individual customer requirements, the company also offers a full range of complementary machines. The portfolio includes multi head-weighers, tray sealers, leak detectors, checkweighers and X-ray inspection systems and the IX-G2 model specially designed for the detection of low-density contaminants such as bone fragments in chicken fillets.

Ishida’s global network provides full local support for every Flex-Grader installation to ensure optimum performance. The company’s aftersales service has continued to support customers across the EMEA region throughout the current pandemic using the latest in support technology, such as augmented reality for the delivery of remote training and servicing. •

Ishida – www.ishida.com

MEAT, FISH & POULTRY

Powerful solutions

The plucker and scalder unit

for full line integration

Marel’s poultry processing systems are known for high yields, reliable performance, ease of operation, low cost of ownership and excellent maintenance models. Maryke Foulds digs into how the company can assist in retrofitting existing plants, turning them into state-of-the-art processing facilities.

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EGARDLESS OF THE desired production capacity and the type of end products, Marel has effective, reliable, profitable and quality solutions. Whether processing 500 or 15 000 broilers per hour, poultry companies can always find tailor-made automation for each process step – from live bird supply, anaesthetising, plucking, evisceration, cooling, cut-up, deboning, sorting, packing and labeling to convenience food processes.

The company invests 6% of its revenues in innovation and research and development every year. This translated to €82m in 2019.

Innovation projects are often conducted in collaboration with renowned research

and scientific institutes, resulting in groundbreaking advances. Many of these solutions have set new standards in the industry, allowing processors to maximise yield, quality and throughput.

Marel pays also considerable attention to important themes such as animal well-being, traceability, food safety, sustainability and CO2 footprint.

INTEGRATION INTO EXISTING LINES – SOFTWARE Adding ‘intelligence’, in terms of software, is the best way to integrate new options into an existing processing line without having to make big investments. Food processing is a

The inventory department at a major chicken supplier

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Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

highly-dynamic industry and it would be very difficult for food processing companies to operate without the support of an intelligent software platform. In such a complex environment, Marel’s plant-wide Innova solution makes it possible to think smart and act quickly. Data-driven processing is critical to make informed decisions that can be implemented with very little notice.

Marel offers all the tools required for the resilience and speed-to-market processors to be competitive in the industry. Across all the departments in the poultry processing plant, modular Innova software solutions connect and serve the needs of the staff on the factory floor or in the control room.

Marel’s Innova software system is fully prepared to be integrated into existing lines. It offers a highly-flexible and fullyscalable production control software suite that empowers processors to efficiently control, monitor and improve every aspect of the production process, from live bird handling up to the dispatching orders and QC processes. It’s a completely modular platform to which modules can be added according to the processors’ needs and requirements. It’s possible to start controlling the weighing, packing, labelling, pricing and palletising processes with end-of-lines modules such as final goods manager, inventory, weighing and labelling and packing. Using these software solutions, food processors can take complete control of their value chain: they can maximise yields, throughput and uptime while reducing costs, stock and give-away.

This software package can be extended with modules such as traceability, order management, quality control and IMPAQT

MEAT, FISH & POULTRY

The traceability scanner

add a second or third plucker with its own specialty. An existing plucker can become a dedicated attack plucker, while the new one will function as a finisher. Combined with new scalding settings, it’s now possible to produce the specific end products that customers ask for, such as skin-on poultry meat with epidermis removed (white product) or not (yellow product). While being able to meet the changed customer demand, the new machine setup will blend perfectly with the existing automated or manual processes.

Barcode scanning in the cold room

“The modular system can grow from straightforward production of chicken parts to a powerful inline cut-up solution”

that offer even more control of plant-wide processes.

Optimised traceability through the whole production chain is at the forefront of food safety. The traceability functionality links every process step of the production chain to ensure that products can be traced back to their source. Quick action can be taken to minimise the impact of recalls.

Implementation of the Innova IMPAQT module (Intelligent Monitoring of Performance, Availability and Quality Trends) will unleash the full potential of a Marel production line. Innova IMPAQT measures the trends in losses in the process over time; it’s the perfect analysing, signalling and optimising tool which starts in the primary process. Optimally-improved production processes and highest added value will be the result.

The CoreTech infeed line

There are modules for every role in the factory, from quality control manager to production planner and technical manager, offering real-time dashboards for paperless control of every production process.

If an incoming flock varies in weight, if a machine shows a drop in performance, if customers suddenly change their order, or if a recipe needs to be changed, Innova gives real-time insight into how processes can be adjusted to solve the issue. Processors who decide to integrate Innova into their daily operations will from then on know exactly what’s happening in the factory in real-time.

They’ll have a stable digital component on which everybody can rely.

MODULAR INTEGRATION When making the switch from manual operations to automated processes, or when an upgrade to a higher capacity is needed, Marel’s modular solutions can integrate into the process at any required level.

With its modular setup, Marel systems can seamlessly combine with other equipment and with manual processes. They can also be flexibly adapted to available space and budget, ensuring tailor-made integration.

Let’s take the defeathering department as an example. To make the defeathering process fit for new products, it is possible to reuse existing scalders and pluckers and

VALUE GROWTH Marel machines also offer the option to grow along with the processors, without needing big investments every time. In this way, it’s possible to integrate new features into existing lines without incurring prohibitive costs.

The Nuova CoreTech, for example, is an eviscerator that can grow in line with its user’s needs without the need to invest in a completely new machine. The first investment in a Nuova CoreTech means the direct availability of all basic features and technical characteristics of a full-scale Nuova system. Later on, when capacity grows, the number of units can be doubled without a big investment and finally, the drawn viscera pack can be transferred automatically to a separate pack shackle, so that the eviscerator has evolved into a top-class machine, without having to buy new machines.

In the same way, a first investment in an ACM-NT Compact cut-up system – customdesigned to match every budget – will immediately give access to first-class automated cut-up, making use of the same modules as a full-blown ACM-NT solution. If customer demand increases even more, upgrading is easy with gradual investments over time. The modular system can grow from straightforward production of chicken parts to a powerful inline cut-up solution, achieving multiple cuts intelligently and simultaneously without manual interference. •

Marel – www.marel.com

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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MEAT, FISH & POULTRY

Clean label insights: The fil-rouge driving innovation in processed & meat alternatives Even though it’s a non-scientific consumer term, ‘clean label’ has nonetheless been accepted by the food industry, consumers, academics and even regulatory agencies. Maryke Foulds looks at why this trend is now considered the new normal in F&B manufacturing.

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n its simplest form, clean label means developing and manufacturing a food or beverage product using as few ingredients as possible and ensuring that those ingredients are recognised by consumers. It also includes products that feature no artificial ingredients or synthetic chemicals, or that substitute food additives (identified in Europe as E-numbers) with natural items.

Although it has no legal or commonly accepted definition, clean label pushes the industry to re-evaluate ingredients, formulations and processes. It can be interpreted as “all natural”, “minimally processed” and “non-GMO.” In a Mintel study, A year of innovation in meat poultry 2020, analyst Stefania Apostol highlighted the three main areas of opportunities in processed meat: To satisfy customer’s needs with clean label and sustainability, animal welfare issues, and paying more attention to consumers’ dietary needs.

The processed image of meat and poultry products can be a purchase barrier for many consumers. As a result, brands are committing to cleaner labels by removing additives and preservatives, artificial ingredients, hormones and antibiotics, amongst others.

A point that consumers are not willing to compromise on is great taste and food safety. The past few years have seen movements aimed at avoiding ingredients considered to cause health issues, such as phosphates - whether scientifically proven or not.

Clean label represents a big opportunity for food manufacturers to increase market share and value proposition. According to a survey 2017 Food Manufacture survey of 1 300 consumers across Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific, 76% of respondents said they would be more likely to buy a product that contained ingredients they recognised and trusted. In the same survey, 52% of respondents said they would spend

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over 10% more on a food or beverage product that contained ingredients they recognised and trusted.

DOES THE CLEAN LABEL TREND IMPACT ON MEAT ALTERNATIVES? Producers of meat alternatives should pay attention to their ingredient selection. Mintel’s report presented during FIE 2019 What’s next for plantbased diets? indicates that plant-based products must deliver on consumer expectation for transparency and naturalness. Up to 44% of UK consumers agree that it is unclear what ingredients are used in meat-free foods, 41% of them consider meat-free food with a short ingredient list more appealing than a long one, and 31% maintain that meat-free food is too processed to be healthier than meat.

The same feeling is shared by French consumers. In France, a third of people interviewed by Mintel specialists agreed that processed plant protein food (e.g. soy burgers) are just as bad for health as processed meat.

HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT INGREDIENTS AND PURSUE THE CLEAN LABEL OPPORTUNITY The bio-ingredients division of Lallemand, and savoury segment specifically, focuses on high-value yeast products from Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Torula yeast. It includes whole cell nutritional yeast, yeast extracts and yeast derivatives.

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

Yeast and yeast derivatives have been used for thousands of years in the production of bread, beer and wine.

It is well-known and appreciated globally for its functionality.

One of the drivers for Lallemand’s applied research is to find applications where the original properties of inactive yeast and yeast fraction are not yet tapped, with the target of playing an active role in the development of clean label solutions for customers.

PHOSPHATE REPLACEMENT IN PROCESSED MEAT The minerals used in meat and meat products has several functions, such as pH adjustment, buffer properties, sequestration of selected cations, changing ionic charge distributions and/ or bacteriostatic effects.

Sequestration of metal ions which are present in meat, such as Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe2+, Fe3+ etc., will enhance the water holding capacity of meat and meat products, improving the degree of tenderness and the meat’s colour.

Whole cell yeast has emulsifying, flavour enhancing, water and oil binding properties that can be useful in processed meat products.

Combining the characteristics of selected inactive yeast and specific process suggestions, Lallemand has reached very interesting results.

Toravita 033 is a yeast-based specialty ingredient with increased water holding capacity. The inclusion in the meat matrix contributes to the colour stability and flavour release - a big opportunity to produce cleaner label emulsified sausages and deli hams, as well as fish fingers, surimi and others.

Taste is one of the main drivers for repeated purchase and other product attributes. It can be targeted for innovation, keeping clean label in mind. A key concept that goes together with clean label, is ‘free from’. Emma Schofield, in the previously mentioned Mintel report, also cites consumers’ interest in free-from dieting. Free from

MEAT, FISH & POULTRY Taste of emulsified sausages: the control contains phoshates

Control

Lalvita 2190 Umami

and cleaner labels are mentioned as drivers for the 'new' plant protein ingredients.

Lallemand Bio-Ingredients yeast extracts, inactive yeast and yeast-based flavours can play a role in defining the flavour of a meat or meat alternative preparation without adding allergens.

Toravita 033

Imagine delicious orientalstyle marinated skewers without the presence of soy or gluten.

This is possible thanks to SavorLyfe SSC, a yeast extract-based natural flavour that can donate the authentic soy sauce taste without the headache of allergens.

From the same product portfolio, Savor-Lyfe BEC is a great ingredient to substitute beef extract.

This allergen-free light brown powder provides characteristic beefy notes. It is useful to enhance and add savoury, meaty notes to vegan and vegetarian soups, sauces, snacks, meat analogues, meat preparations and stews. Thanks to its taste and flavour profile, Savor-Lyfe

BEC helps to lower the salt content without compromising the savoury experience.

Savor-Lyfe CB (chicken, boiled) is characterised by a long-lasting boiled chicken flavour, ideal for nuggets as well as for plant-based meals, soups, sauces, etc.

The most recent product launch is Savor-Lyfe FB (fish, boiled). The allergen-free light beige powder with a characteristic umami and sweet base note of boiled fish is the perfect building block for fish taste foundation.

It is suitable for fish fingers, crab soups, surimi and many more delicious preparations.

If you are looking for a clean label smoked touch in your meals, Bakon is the equivalent of traditionally smoked torula yeast. Manufactured using a unique process, this range of ingredients adds umami and smoky flavour notes to different food applications. Bakon Memphis style, with its robust hickory essence profile, evokes the traditional BBQ cooking style of the Memphis area in the US. •

Savannah Fine Chemicals – www.savannah.co.za

Yeast-based ingredients for additive-free solutions The Savory product range is distributed

by Savannah.

www.savannah.co.za

Lake States ® LALLEMAND BIO-INGREDIENTS

1620 Préfontaine, Montréal QC H1W 2N8 Canada | +1 514 522 2133 | Fax +1 514 522 2884 | info@bio-lallemand.com | www.bio-lallemand.com

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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MEAT, FISH & POULTRY

Strong systems equals food production safety Since the COVID-19 outbreak, food safety remains an area of critical concern in food production facilities. It is particularly important to keep production lines and preparation areas uncontaminated.

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N SOUTH AFRICA and on the African continent standards of food safety for the food production industry have evolved. “It is now at a point where most of the steps required to safeguard consumer safety are in place,” notes Emma Corder, MD of industrial cleaning products manufacturer Industroclean.

The Compulsory Specification for Processed Meat Products introduced in 2019 is a direct result of the listeriosis outbreak.

It is aimed at eliminating further food contamination crises by setting out clear checks and balances for processed meat manufacturing.

Any shop or butchery, including inhouse butcheries in retail stores involved in the manufacturing of processed meat products for sale, is regarded as a factory.

All consumers want safer meat with high integrity supply chains.

Building trust with consumers starts with understanding their values relating to meat and then aligning industry values to these. The same standards for commercial butcheries and food producers should apply to retailers’ in-house butcheries.

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The carcass rails used for transporting and storing meat, walk-in refrigerators, storerooms and cutting areas are all areas within an in-house butchery and equipment.

In particular, meat slicers can be the ideal area for food residue to build up and cause bacteria to grow.

Bacteria can contaminate food and cause foodborne illnesses. Meat slicers and cutting boards should be wiped down when switching meats or produce and should be fully cleaned once a day. Wipe down the blade from the centre outward with a soapy cloth. Rinse with hot water and a clean towel then sanitise and allow to air dry.

It is recommended that SANS approved cleaning chemicals for food production are used as they are specifically formulated to dissolve grease, proteins, starch, and other organic compounds.

“The basic principles of a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) food safety management system should be applied,” Corder adds.

This requires that manufacturers and food preparation facilities identify potential hazards, where they may occur and how this

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

7 EASY STEPS TO AVOID CROSS-CONTAMINATION • Food processing and handling staff should continuously wear the necessary uniform including food service coats, gloves, aprons, hairnets and masks.

• Implement a cleaning schedule for the food preparation space, detailing who cleans where, how they clean and with what they clean.

• Use colour coding to separate different areas. For instance, receiving, storage, process and cutting areas and colour code the cleaning equipment to match these specific areas.

• Use only SANS-approved cleaning chemicals.

• Ensure that the two-step cleaning method is followed: degrease to remove any protein build-up and then disinfect to remove bacteria (or viruses) at a microscopic level.

• Clean display cabinets, refrigerator and storage room doors and preparation and cutting surfaces once a day applying the two-step cleaning method.

• Dispose of food waste regularly and correctly. can be controlled. They should set limits that allow these hazards to be controlled at each critical point, and ensure these limits are properly monitored.

"Applying the simple steps and covering all the bases outlined in HACCP guidelines for food manufacturing and production should, at the very least, ensure that bacterial infections are avoided. Hygiene procedures and cleaning schedules are a key part of this process, and a manageable way to ensure the minimum levels of compliance," Corder concludes. •

Industroclean – www.industroclean.co.za

DAIRY FOOD

Beating cold chain

challenges with ambient dairy Africa’s dairy market is tipped for growth, but first, manufacturers must overcome the spoilage factor to maximise sales.

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xtreme heat, poor roads and a shortage of refrigerators cause major distribution challenges for dairy manufacturers in large parts of Africa. Despite this, the market has shown promising growth in recent years and, with the trend set to continue, the business case for overcoming cold chain issues is strong.

While the starting point for growth is relatively modest – per capita consumption is still considerably lower than in other regions – several factors are contributing to the dairy category’s rise.

“If you look at the Nasdaq list of the fastest growing economies, six of the top ten are in Africa, where there is a growing middle class with more disposable income,” says Brett Wordon, who has spent years following the dairy market’s development as innovation group manager for IFF in South Africa.

“The fact that Africa has the world’s youngest population with more mobile phones than people is behind a high exposure to social media coverage about product launches in other markets. The curiosity this generates is creating an exciting foundation for truly African dairy innovation.”

RESTRICTIONS ON GROWTH According to the latest market forecast from Euromonitor, volume sales of dairy products, excluding milk, will grow an average 3.1% yearon-year up to 2025. Fermented milk products such as East African maziwa lala are among the most popular. Wordon attributes this to their lower lactose content, a major concern in a region where some 80% of consumers are lactose intolerant.

Spoilage, however, is a growth-hampering problem. Much of the milk is produced by rural smallholder farmers, who are so spread out that milk may be a day in transit before it arrives at the

“According to the latest market forecast from Euromonitor, volume sales of dairy products, excluding milk, will grow an average 3.1% year-onyear up to 2025”

dairy for processing. Fluctuating temperatures during transport result in considerable milk waste from the outset.

Once products leave the dairy, shelf life is further compromised by breaks in the cold chain during distribution and a lack of refrigerators in consumer homes.

SOLUTIONS IN SIGHT There are solutions on the horizon. One is the rise of new and sophisticated dairies, designed to meet the highest standards of food safety and quality. Another is the development of functional ingredient blends that enable dairies to produce premium ambient yoghurts and other fermented dairy products – similar to the trendy international brands seen on social media.

“Ambient dairy products address the need for a longer safe shelf life without a cold chain. That’s not only an efficient way to cut waste. It also gives manufacturers the opportunity to extend their geographical reach. An ambient yoghurt produced in South Africa, for example, can then easily be exported to West Africa,” Wordon explains.

Nigeria is a case in point. A country that traditionally consumes more reconstituted than fresh dairy products, it already imports ambient yoghurts from manufacturers in Europe. In the future, many of these imports could come from African dairies instead.

ADAPTABLE INGREDIENTS Tailored functional ingredients will be essential for success. Dairy manufacturers need solutions that

can give ambient products the necessary stability to withstand transport and the spoonable textures that consumers like. Wordon points to affordability, ease of use and improved product quality as other key requirements.

“Manufacturers can thermise yoghurt to extend product shelf life. The drawback is that the combination of a high temperature and low pH denatures milk proteins, causing a gritty texture and separation. From an ingredient perspective, thermisation also destroys texturising ingredients like modified starch, resulting in a runny final product.

“As African consumers prefer a thick yoghurt texture, manufacturers need solutions that both protect the proteins and maintain yoghurt spoonability after the second heat treatment – without adding to the cost.”

As long as food security, a reliable power supply and malnutrition are prime concerns across the African continent, price will remain important. For this reason, the sustainability aspect of ambient dairy production is still a lesser priority. With dairy farmers in South Africa and Kenya already feeling the impact of climate change on yield, it is only a matter of time before the need to avoid milk waste will become a focus of attention. When that happens, the business case for ambient yoghurt production will gain one more salient argument. •

IFF – www.iff.com

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

Make novel flavours work for you Cape Food Ingredients has an extensive range of flavours suitable for the distilling and manufacture of alcoholic beverages on the African continent.

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OOD MANUFACTURING AFRICA spoke to Brian Lanton about the company’s novel tool kit approach that lets customers formulate products in conjunction with CFI’s large product development team to find the final preferred profile.

“Gin for example, is one of the most popular alcoholic flavours in Africa, although it varies in preference from country to country. There is complete flexibility is taking the key notes up and down, such as in those of typical juniper, citrus and green botanical flavours,” he explains. “In the Gin spectrum, there is currently a popular trend of adding other flavours, such as coconut, pineapple and cranberry. When formulating with these .additional ingredients and flavours in mind, the R&D team at CFI can also assist.”

With Whiskies there is a whole different palate of smoky, woody, fruity notes that result in CFI being able to develop the selected profile. Bourbon, Scotch and various other Whisky notes are all available.

With factories and distribution points in

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FACT BOX Cape Food Ingredients has full flavour and ingredients manufacturing facilities in South Africa and East Africa. Plans are well advanced to open an additional facility in West Africa later in 2021. These regional facilities allow food manufacturers to dramatically cut import costs and working capital commitments, as well as cutting long lead times — an increasingly crucial factor when dealing with the surge in COVID logistics issues. The CFI facilities manufacture both powder and liquid products for all food sectors.

the various regions of sub-Saharan Africa, CFI also offers the key advantages of shorter logistics chains and low minimum order quantities.

“Because we are active in so many African markets, we know local market profiles and so can assist customers more effectively than non-African companies.

“Currently we stock flavours in Nairobi, Kampala, Lusaka, Cape Town and Luanda.

During 2021 we have plans for two further points in West Africa. That makes CFI one of

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

the most accessible suppliers in Africa,” he points out. Besides the thriving sector of alcoholic beverages, such flavours are also used in the growing area of non-alcoholic beverages. Alcohol-free Gin & Tonic and similar cocktail mixers can be attractive and healthy alternatives, and the CFI product development team has ample experience with these. •

Cape Food Ingredients – www.capefoodingredients.co.za

White, Gold or other variations, you can choose.

TEQUILA

Not only Vodka, but all other flavours that go with Vodka, such as Cranberry.

VODKA

From Standard to Reserve Brandy types, and even Cognac.

BRANDY

SPECIAL FLAVOURS

Head Office: Email:

+27 (0)21 789 1885 info@capesa.co.za

Distribution throughout Sub-Saharan Africa

www.capefoodingredients.com

Not only flavours, but also ask us about our unique Creamy Base.

CREAM LIQUEURS

A range of anise, mints, nuts, coffee and other flavours- the key to making great liqueurs.

LIQUEURS

White, Dark or Caribbean notes, you select.

RUM

A great collection of Scotch, Bourbon and all other types. Many variations in peat, caramel, cola, oak, vanilla and other key flavour notes.

WHISKEY

Key impact notes such as French Oak, American Oak, Bitters (Herbal), Quinine etc.

Every note you need for great Gins, including botanical notes and even natural gin extract.

GIN

BEVERAGE FLAVOURS

Or you can tell us which market leader profile is preferred and we can tailor your flavour accordingly.

We can develop the profile that you need from our library of aroma compounds.

From cost-effective to expensive (but superb) natural extracts, we have the best collection of raw materials to make your alcoholic beverage range special.

CFI has the most extensive and nuanced range of flavours for alcoholic beverages in Africa

ALCOHOLIC

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

How high-performing labels help South Africa to recycle

Like other countries worldwide, South Africa is stepping up its recycling efforts by looking at legislation and investing in infrastructure to increase the recycling rates for consumer packaging.

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CL LABEL IS a supplier to premium beer, cider and other beverage brands in South Africa and neighbouring countries. When CCL constructed their state-of-the-art production site in Midrand, Johannesburg in early 2020, one of the major topics was the engineering of highperforming sustainable labels.

Q&A WITH SHIVERN REDDY, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR AFRICA Q: W hat role do labels play in recycling?

A: Premium decoration plays an important role for the brand image and although they are just a small part of the packaging, labels are a decisive factor for recycling quality and yield. Either they need to detach efficiently from the rest of the packaging, or they need to be made from the same material, so that label and container can be recycled together.

WASHOFF LABELS ENABLE RETURNABLE SYSTEMS When glass bottles are returned, they are washed and prepared for re-filling. To enable this process, the labels must detach easily in the washing process to save energy.

The labels are thoroughly constructed and engineered to detach at standard operating temperatures. Ink and adhesive stay on the labels, guaranteeing the washing solution won’t be contaminated thus reducing the use of water and chemicals.

Q: H ow do you collaborate with the customer?

A: We see continuous innovation and collaboration as the key to success.

When speaking to the customer we want to understand their recycling targets and sustainable programmes. We offer workshops to find the most sustainable solutions for them and strive to be their number one trusted development partner when it comes to designing packaging that can be easily recycled at the end-oflife. “Design for Recycling” and following published guidelines is a major focus for CCL Label.

ECOSTREAM LABELS BOOST PET RECYCLING The quality of the recycled PET flakes is crucial for their reuse. To avoid contamination of the flakes, CCL’s EcoStream labels are engineered to easily detach during the recycling process, without inks or adhesive dissolving. The labels detach and float to the top of the washing basin in the sink/float process while the heavier PET flakes sink to the bottom. This ideal separation enhances the quality of the PET yield and bottle-to-bottle recycling closing the loop.

ECOFLOAT: SUSTAINABLE SLEEVE MATERIAL Many brands use sleeve decoration to enhance the look of their brand and deliver important nutritional and recycling information. CCL has developed a new technological breakthrough of a premium shrink sleeve with a lower density than PET to support the recycling stream. Being lighter the sleeve will float to the top of the water basin for easy separation during the grinding and washing process.

LABELS MADE WITH POST-CONSUMER RECYCLED MATERIALS OR BIO-BASED MATERIALS It is becoming more important to include recycled post-consumer materials into the packaging. CCL Label is developing solutions

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that include more than 30% recycled content thus keeping materials within the circular economy. As recycled materials are used, the CO2 footprint decreases, supporting action on climate. CCL also offers film options that contain bio-based plastic resins derived from tall oil which is a by-product of the paper industry and offers a further reduction in manufacturing CO2 levels.

"We can find a label or sleeve solution that ideally fits the needs of our customers when it comes to recycling targets – for big and small brands”, says Shivern Reddy, business development director Africa at CCL Label. “We are a sustainable market leader and are constantly investing in Research & Development to drive the engineering of premium decorations that help recycle packaging more efficiently.” •

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

Q: Which printing technologies do you offer?

A: Our gravure printing technologies offer a wide range of high-quality prints such as high-lustre metallic finishes, tactile effects and soft-touch varnishes. Our proprietary manufacturing process allows us to develop and drive premium decoration within the PSL and sleeve market place.

CCL can also offer world-class solutions for AR and VR experiences. For brands to connect to the consumers Connected Packaging can be an ideal solution, especially when people are staying home.

Creating brand experiences accessible via the label by scanning it with the smartphone is one of the top packaging trends 2021, bringing browser-based connectivity to the consumers.

CCL Label - www.ccllabel.com

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

Consumer demand

for healthier beverages skyrocketing Kerry’s The Right Taste for Healthier Beverages white paper examines consumer behaviour, trends and accelerating demand for tasty, healthier beverages in terms of sugar reduction, alternative dairy, low- or no-alcohol drinks and beers, hard seltzers and plant proteins.

A continuing trend is low- or no-alcohol beverage substitutes that closely mimic the taste of traditional alcohol such as Gin

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HE PAPER REVIEWS the secular rise in those people wishing to subsist in a way that is more beneficial to themselves and the planet.

This presents a challenge to product developers to respond without sacrificing the taste many have come to love and expect. The pandemic has helped accelerate this shift in consumer behaviour by revealing evidence that comorbidities such as obesity and diabetes can lead to more severe outcomes.

“Another continuing trend is consumers seeking low- or no-alcohol beverage substitutes that closely mimic the taste of traditional alcohols such as Gin”

The paper outlines the technical challenges involved in creating healthier beverages in the key areas of sugar reduction, alternative dairy, low- or noalcohol drinks and beers, hard seltzers and plant protein beverages, and then outlines optimal ways to formulate tasty, healthy alternatives that will appeal to today’s more health-conscious public.

"COVID-19 has accelerated the trend of consumers seeking healthy foods and beverages," says Coralie Garcia Perrin, global marketing director Sweet Taste, Kerry.

"Our research shows that taste remains the top priority for people globally.”

Although commercial beverage manufacturing may appear fairly straightforward, almost all processing and formulation changes can affect the taste. As consumers demand these healthier, more nutritious and more sustainable beverages,

product developers need to address their health goals while maximising taste and mouthfeel appeal.

“In this white paper, the Kerry Tastesense R&D and beverage applications team first focuses on general beverage trends and formulation challenges and then drills down to the best ways to formulate healthier beverages that retain their agreeable taste and mouthfeel and, ultimately, foster customer brand loyalty. The solutions presented in the various target areas should be of interest to every product developer.”

There is little doubt the trend to healthier beverages is here to stay. Currently, more than 35 countries have implemented sugar taxes as a health strategy. The public's willingness and desire to curtail their sugar intake continues to heavily influence the industry as a whole, with sweetenedbeverage taxation policies precipitating a rapid change in direction for beverage manufacturers globally. According to Mintel, there has been a 44% increase in low-/reduced-sugar products in beverages since 2015. The practice of reducing sugar, however, leads to several unintended challenges around taste and mouthfeel delivery that must be addressed.

One pivotal trend is an expansion of the range of non-dairy beverages, alternatives that are perceived as “healthier” by 71% of consumers. According to Kerry’s research, more than one-half of protein users now report “dairy-free” as their most important consideration when purchasing protein products. Plant-based beverages, which circumvent the outsized carbon emissions associated with animal products, are widely accepted as being less harmful to the planet. However, taste and texture remain significant challenges given that people simply will not compromise on taste.

Another continuing trend is consumers seeking low- or no-alcohol beverage

DID YOU KNOW? A third of global consumers are what Euromonitor terms “immunity seekers.” This development often begins with choosing food and beverages with reduced sugar and other healthy credentials.

substitutes that closely mimic the taste of traditional alcohols such as Gin. Developing these alternatives requires getting as close to the taste of real alcohol as possible, necessitating quality ingredients to boost the mouthfeel, taste and alcoholic sensation. Also, over the last five years, the public has become aware of such novel beverages as hard seltzers (the US) and low-/no-alcohol spirits (increasingly available in Europe).

“The emergence and meteoric rise of the hard seltzer and low-/no-alcohol categories in recent years is a confirmation that the beverage category is in a time of rapid change. Beverage producers that wish to emerge as market leaders in their categories must aim to develop highly appealing novel products,” adds Perrin.

“We think The Right Taste for Healthier Beverages white paper will be a significant aid to producers as they deal with the thorny taste and formulation challenges they face every day in the quest to deliver new beverage concepts and products.” Visit the website for the full paper. •

Kerry – www. Kerry.com

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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BEVERAGE PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY

Aseptic PET technology combines dairy and juice filling on the same bottling line

Varun Beverages Ltd, part of RJ Corp group, one of the largest franchises for PepsiCo Inc. globally, has installed Sidel’s Aseptic Combi Predis in its newly established plant in Punjab, India.

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HIS PIVOTAL PROJECT aims to expand PET bottling capacity and provide production flexibility for the private label milk brand Cream Bell as well as Pepsi’s Tropicana juice range. By choosing the new aseptic dry preform sterilisation technology, RJ Corp is commercialising its liquid dairy products (LDP) in PET for the first time in India.

The group is one of the largest bottling partners for PepsiCo in the world, currently holding 36 plants on the Indian subcontinent and in Africa, and producing carbonated soft drinks, water and hot-fill juices as well as LDP. WHEN PRODUCTION FLEXIBILITY MATTERS With consumers looking for nutritional beverages, the market keeps shifting towards so-called “better-for-you” drinks. To remain competitive, RJ Corp decided to diversify its portfolio and put more emphasis on its 100% juices with pulp and ultra-high temperature (UHT) LDP, thus gaining more production flexibility to switch product categories easily.

“Managing both juices and dairy products on the same PET packaging line flexibly was essential for us, and we could make it happen only by producing in aseptic,” says R.J.S. Bagga, director technical & operations at RJ Corp. “High-level food safety and hygiene standards were must-have features

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to answer Pepsi’s demanding quality protocol as well as to pass internal and external validations.”

To face these challenges, the company decided to go with Sidel’s Aseptic Combi Predis, including dry preform sterilisation.

They were convinced that it is a very safe and easy-to-operate solution while visiting a French co-packer that has used and trusted this technology to handle both juices and milk for more than 10 years.

The technology has been approved by the FDA for low-acid production since 2017 and allows the beverage producer to switch easily and safely between four UHT milk flavours (white UHT milk, coffee, chocolate and mango) and various kinds of juice recipes on the same line. This represents a major turning point for the companies in India, which were previously producing juices in PET bottles with the hot-fill process and milk in cartons.

UP TO 200 HOURS OF CONTINUOUS PRODUCTION The investment marks two major achievements for RJ Corp in India: Not only is this the company’s first step into aseptic PET bottling, but also its first experience with dry preform sterilisation.

Employing the injection of hydrogen

Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

peroxide (H2O2) before the oven, Sidel’s patented Predis technology requires no water consumption and can reduce the use of chemicals significantly. This is a lighthouse project for PepsiCo Inc. worldwide regarding the processing and bottling of its high-acid products – the Tropicana juices.

The Aseptic Combi Predis also features a similar dry sterilisation for caps, Capdis, as it was very important to optimise the cleaning process and the handling of the caps themselves to avoid deformation and ensure tightness between the cap and the bottle.

“RJ Corp chose Sidel because of our longstanding expertise in PET and aseptic technologies. Their new line allows for up to 200 hours of continuous production without any stoppages for cleaning, keeping the production running steadily without any compromise on product quality. The equipment is easy to manage, and the operators find its functions intuitive and easily accessible,” says Rohit Sawhney, sales director for Sidel India.

OPTIMISED AND EFFICIENT ASEPTIC PET PACKAGING LINE In addition to the Aseptic Combi Predis, the complete line is equipped with a

BEVERAGE PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY

very competitive and flexible end of line. It features the seamless shrinkwrapper VersaFilm Access, offering the best combination of production quality, performance and price at medium speed.

It also includes the automatic and safe PalKombi layer-by-layer palletiser working with a steady low-level pallet infeed and allowing easy access and control.

To understand its line operations and maximise overall equipment effectiveness, RJ Corp also invested in Sidel’s efficiency improvement tool (EIT). This modular and scalable software provides the most significant performance indicators, reports and analyses, based on live and historical data, to better understand line flow, uncover sources of efficiency loss and achieve in-depth performance evaluation.

It monitors quality, losses, consumption, accumulation and traceability, and interfaces with inspection devices and business systems.

To make the most of this line, specific training was delivered to enable all RJ Corp technicians to get the right understanding of aseptic PET packaging, including the

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point system (HACCP), and thus avoid any risk of contamination or detect root causes efficiently in case it happens. Since its implementation and validation, the line has been working successfully with an output up to 36 000 bottles per hour. Overall, it expands production capabilities in terms of volume as well as a higher number of SKUs. ENSURING PACKAGING PERFORMANCE ACROSS THE SUPPLY CHAIN Traditionally, in India, milk is packaged in pouches, glass bottles or cartons. By choosing Sidel’s aseptic PET packaging technology, RJ Corp has widened packaging options for its LDP products. The brandnew PET bottle assures high food quality standards and outstanding customer experiences, along with PET being a costefficient and sustainable material.

During the implementation of the packaging line, Sidel also shared its experience in PET packaging and helped design the new PET bottle, enabling the same shapes and caps to be used for both Cream Bell UHT milk and the Tropicana

juices. The cap size for all bottle formats is 33mm, which is a common width for LDP, but quite uncommon for juices. As a result, Sidel’s packaging experts developed and designed an iconic bottle shape in three formats – 200ml, 500ml and 1L. All of the bottle shapes and formats have been qualified internally. They were submitted to Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and on-site validations prior to industrial production in order to ensure the bottles’ strength and performance across the supply chain. Sidel also designed specific preforms to reach optimised bottle weight in order to withstand the dry preform sterilisation technology and avoid any thermal stresses on the bottle. Produced in white monolayer barrier PET, the new packaging ensures a shelf life up to nine months for UHT milk.

Furthermore, all the transparent Tropicana juice bottles passed the demanding PepsiCo validation protocols. •

Sidel – www.sidel.com

SUPER COMBI COMPACT

MORE PERFORMANCE, LESS SPACE.

Sidel Super Combi Compact integrates five process steps into a single system: preform feeder, blower, labeller, filler/capper and cap feeder.

This solution drastically reduces the space required, while enhancing performance thanks to new dynamic filling technology that produces up to 54,000 bph. This makes it the ideal solution for maximising water production and increasing line efficiency while reducing your TCO. That’s one compact, super-efficient solution. sidel.com/supercombicompact

ADVSuperCombiCompact_177x130_10022021.indd 1

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2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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ROBOTICS

Robot streamlines food deliveries in a pilot trial

An autonomous mobile robot has been seen moving around the corridors of the Redi shopping centre in Kalasatama, a neighbourhood in Helsinki, Finland.

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PERATED BY OMRON’S solution partner Dimalog, the robot was taking part in a month-long ‘Homeon Demand’ automated courier service trial. This is testing the potential for using autonomous robots for deliveries to urban homes. It’s part of a larger experiment called the Six City Strategy ‘New solutions in city logistics’ project, which is looking at possible options for last mile deliveries in Finnish cities. It’s looking for solutions that will organise urban logistics as lightly, sustainably and efficiently as possible.

REFINING THE ROBOT Omron, Dimalog and Muotohiomo worked closely together to refine the operation and design of the robot so that they met the specific needs of the project. To move around successfully, the robot had to navigate the supermarket and tower block corridors as well as using elevators and service tunnels. As it moved, the robot both whistled and talked in Finnish (using a speech synthesiser).

Lotta Toivonen, development manager for Housing Services at SRV (which built both the shopping centre and the Majakka tower block) comments, “The idea of whistling is that it’s a funny thing. On the other hand, people also realise that the robot is coming. It speaks a bit, and people greet it. It is treated as if it was a person.”

Kaisa Spilling of Forum Virium adds. “It’s been fun to see how people along the way feel like it’s human. It might say in the elevator, ‘I’m sorry I would like to get out here’ or ‘Oops, the elevator is full, I’ll ask to use another elevator.’”

RUNNING THE TRIAL So, how did the trial work? Each delivery started with the receipt of an online order from a customer using the Asumi platform. Orders could also be placed through the supermarket by the shopping centre's smaller businesses. The items (mainly meals) would be collected at the supermarket and loaded by staff into the robot, which would then deliver the order to the relevant business or apartment. The customer would receive an automatic notification as soon as the robot delivered the item. Kaisi Spilling remarks, “During the coronavirus epidemic, the robot has brought lunches for homeworkers. Lunch time has been fully booked.”

Throughout the trial, the robot could request an elevator itself but needed an escort to open any doors that might have to be kept closed due to fire safety regulations. The escort was a university service design student, who reported any problems encountered by the robot and observed its interaction with people.

SELF-NAVIGATING ROBOTS The robot used on the trial was an Omron LD model - a self-navigating autonomous mobile robot (AMR). Unlike traditional autonomously guided vehicles (AGVs), Omron’s mobile robots don’t need any expensive modifications to facilities (such as floor magnets or navigational beacons). They navigate by the natural features of the facility, having been designed to move material within challenging environments that might include confined passageways, as well as locations where there might be people moving around. Omron’s software also integrates with a company’s other systems so that the robots can become operational in minimal time. Esa Korhonen, area sales manager at Omron in Finland explains, “Our mobile robots can dramatically boost the productivity of logistics operations.

They can navigate effectively and provide invaluable support to human workers. This enables employees to focus on other tasks that require complex human skills.”

Kaisi Spilling concludes, “We are looking for new agile logistics solutions in the city.

We are exploring how we could improve the smoothness of everyday life in building the future. Robotics is essentially related to a smooth everyday life.” •

Omron – www.omron.com

Superior image sensing speed and precision FH Series

• High-precision object detection • Ultra-high-speed searching • Flexible functionalities to provide high compatibility with manufacturing machines

Would you like to know more? +27 (0)11 579 2600 info_sa@omron.com industrial.omron.co.za fh_series_177x65_ad_enza_02_d01.indd 1

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Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

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PACKAGING

Fast and flexible solutions prove invaluable for soft fruit growers

Proseal’s advanced tray sealing machines are helping growers meet ever-increasing demand for soft fruit - which has been particularly strong during the current pandemic - by providing high quality, flexible sealing solutions that also deliver on sustainability.

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S SOFT FRUIT volumes continue to climb, and with the market for fruit grown in the UK now estimated to be worth over £670 million a year, manufacturers are looking for flexible solutions that can meet the demanding high-speed requirements driven by the seasons. Equally important is the need to minimise the use of packaging materials without impacting on the effectiveness of the pack, in particular its ability to provide product protection to help reduce food waste.

Proseal offers an extensive range of high-quality manual, semi-automatic and fully automatic tray sealers, designed to

be flexible and incorporating a number of unique design features that maximise speeds and efficiencies. In addition, Proseal machines’ two-minute rapid-tool-change means endless varieties of tray formats, materials and sizes can be sealed on one machine, allowing users to quickly switch from one tray type to another.

“Our tray sealing machines offer fruit growers greater flexibility to seal different designs and sizes of trays with efficiency and accuracy,” explains Proseal sales director Tony Burgess. “This, combined with our innovative technologies and production lead times, make us a world leader in tray sealing soft fruits.

DID YOU KNOW? Proseal is part of the JBT Corporation family, a leading global technology solutions provider to high-value segments of the food processing industry, committed to providing a service that surpasses customer expectations.

2021 Quarter 1 | Food Manufacturing Africa

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PACKAGING

More recently, the company has been at the forefront of the introduction of new recyclable and compostable trays and film for fruit that can further reduce plastic usage by as much as 96%.

“Proseal continues to strive to develop the most effective and sustainable sealing solutions for its customers,” concludes Tony Burgess.

“We are proud of the many innovations we have developed for the effective and efficient tray sealing of soft fruit. And we will continue to develop the appropriate technologies to help support sustainable solutions that deliver quality.” • “ProMotion our continuous infeed technology, for example, has the potential to increase the speed of a tray sealer by up to 30%, while creating calm machine operations which ensure a smoother, more stable journey to the sealing station. This is particularly beneficial to delicate produce, such as soft fruit.”

Proseal also manufactures a diverse and customisable line of intelligent conveyor systems, designed to create ultimate line control and optimisation and DT012-1.pdf

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therefore perfect for the fast-moving soft fruit industry.

The company has pioneered several important sustainability initiatives throughout its 23 years. Proseal was the driving force behind the replacement of traditional clam-shell punnets with top film sealed varieties, which has now become commonplace in soft fruit markets across Europe and now North America, helping to minimise plastic usage by around 45% in most cases.

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Food Manufacturing Africa | 2021 Quarter 1

Proseal - www.proseal.com

Materials Handling

Performance

Flexibility

Simplicity

Controls & AI

Project Management

Processing

End of Line

Coating & Seasoning

Packaging Cooling & Freezing

We put a lot into

Distribution

this one perfect fry.

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