The new machine from Unitherm Food Systems pasteurises the surface of onions for enhanced safety and is claimed to reduce product loss compared with traditional cutting methods, since it removes only 5% of the weight of the onion.
After flame tube removal of the skin and outer layer, onions pass through a cold bath to cool. The pasteurised and washed onions are said to retain the same colour and flavour of the original product, while increasing yield and reducing the risk of contamination.
Traditionally, onions are processed using a top and tail cutter, which can introduce listeria contamination and results in losses of up to 30% by weight.
With the new kit, a single continuous belt can hold nine to 10 onions in line with hundreds of onions passing through the system at once. The full pasteurisation process takes only 45 seconds, and a single machine can process 5,455kg of product an hour.
To find out more information contact Unitherm