
In spice and other related agri – commodities, the process of drying, sorting, cleaning & grading is the primary step of value addition. We assist our clients to setup ‘purpose – built’ or customized post harvest handling systems to process quality spice products, powders, and blends.
Dry spice cleaning, sorting, grading & Size reduction, first stage Value addition in Raw spices by doing grading and sorting to converting it to make further value added products like Powders and Extracts. Different sorting and size reduction technologies are used.
Recovering the lost volatile flavour molecules and capturing them in an aqueous medium to put back or reuse is a standard requirement of F&F, Tea, Coffee and similar industries. During the extraction process, the aromatic components get released depending on their relative volatility causing a skewness in the product character. Post extraction handling may cause chemical changes to some of the remaining volatiles and processes such us vacuum distillation removes almost all available aromatic compounds. The resultant product is dull and nothing closely resembling the original raw material. Aroma recovery and add back system enables the customer to produce extract characteristics like the original botanical source. Aroma or essences thus recovered can also be used as an F&F ingredient by itself. We employ several advanced techniques to produce aromas essences and are designed on a case-to-case basis using processes like distillation, condensation, thin film distillation, adsorption and membrane technologies.
Extraction by hydrocarbon solvents involve heating and longer physical processes to reduce the solvent residue to the approved levels. This imparts some thermal damage to the product, some of the freshness may be lost and there could be reduction in active contents. Also, with increasing awareness, consumers demand ingredients that are free from any residues irrespective of the regulatory standards.
Supercritical Fluid (Carbon dioxide) Extraction – SCFE – is a method that resolves all the above challenges. Carbon dioxide gas in supercritical stage is used as the solvent instead of hydrocarbons, which has ‘selective’ solvent power to customize product profiles.
SCFE can also be utilized as a post-extraction conditioning process – for purification, enrichment, removal of pesticides and other contaminants etc.
We assist our clients to set-up turn-key projects and help them with the final application, markets, product development and operational support in this domain.
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Solvent extraction is the most common method to separate non-volatile constituents and resins etc from any botanical raw materials: Spices, herbs, flowers, gums, rhizomes, roots and more. The design of a solvent extraction process is influenced by type of raw materials, active botanical constituent to be recovered, characteristics and rheology of the final product. The active substance recovery, post-extraction handling, and solvent recovery are the key performance criteria for an efficient plant. Thus, extraction technologies and solvents are to be carefully chosen after thorough analysis of the raw material and its chemistry. Our designs are tested on all the regular herbs, spices and other botanicals. We can design plants and processes for any specific raw materials or target product characteristics. Blending, homogenizing and product quality assurance is a key process in the extraction business.Blending, homogenizing and product quality assurance is a key process in the extraction business.
The concentration process for high value heat sensitive materials require finer distillation methods to retain the quality and form close to its natural character. To ensure very minimal heat-contact time, we assist our clients to implement and utilise the high-end techniques of thin film Evaporation and Distillation, which has the heat contact time as low as one second. Similar methods can also be used for effective deodorization of certain botanical and spice extracts.
Looking for troubleshooting or optimizing an existing evaporation process? Follow the link at ‘Consult Us section to get an advice on the same.
Value addition or specialization is the key to maintain bottom-line in the F&F ingredient business. The essential oils and liquid extracts fetch higher values when fractionated properly to boost specific actives. Molecular distillation is the most efficient method for this enrichment. It is also an important process in controlling incidental contaminants and Agri residues in some of the essential oil products. To understand how Molecular Distillation forms an important component our ‘extraction toolkit’ approach, follow the link at ‘Ask Our Experts’ section.
Essential oils produced from spices, herbs and flowers are important primary ingredients for the Flavour and Fragrance Industry. Distillation of essences have been practiced for several millennia, which have been perfected employing precision controls and purpose-built designs. Our ‘optimized design’ distillation units provide higher productivity, optimum batch times, maximum yields and good separation efficiency.
Should you have a question on troubleshooting your current distillation plant or processing a new raw material? Follow the link at ‘Ask Our Experts’ section.
Dehydration and Drying process had been used since a very long time to preserve food materials by systematically removing the moisture content and thereby ceasing the festering of bacteria, yeasts and moulds. Our dehydration and drying systems prioritize in the cost-effective prevention of food putrefaction as well as to retain the originality of the raw material so as to achieve premium quality and value in market. A number of precision methods are being practiced globally by the industry as a standalone process or in combination.
Fractional distillation is the separation of a mixture into its constituents at their highest possible pure form. It uses distillation to fractionate component parts that have boiling points very close to each other. Fractional distillation is the most common form of separation technology used in separation of mixture solvents, essential oils, etc.
Reverse Osmosis or Forward Osmosis or Membrane Separations, these technologies are used for different purposes like purification, concentration and separation. These are the finest choice for extraction and concentration of heat sensitive substances such as tea, fruits and vegetable juices as well other extracts.
Bio-assisted extraction, leveraging nature's catalysts such as enzymes, revolutionizes the extraction process by selectively targeting and breaking down cell walls or specific bonds within plant material. This innovative approach allows for the release of desired compounds without compromising the delicate structures of the substances involved. For instance, proteases are employed for efficient protein extraction, pectinases aid in fruit juice clarification, and cellulases play a crucial role in biofuel production from biomass. Enrichment techniques like chromatography and filtration purify the extracted compounds, removing unwanted components. This results in a purer and more valuable final product. This is a gentler process that preserves bioactivity and quality. Higher selectivity of the process will minimize impurities and bio assisted methods are more sustainable and less energy intensive.