Gentle and efficient sterilization of spices at Almi

March 2024

The reference at a glance

Project

Complete system for gentle sterilization with steam

Technology

Complete system, consisting of pneumatic filling, a vertical BHS sterilizer and a horizontal BHS cooler

Operating site

Austria

Industry

Foodtechnology

Application

Sterilizing spices

Solution

System for dynamic spice sterilization adapted to several customer requirements

Highest quality and optimum taste: this is what the Austrian company Almi stands for. Among other things, Almi ensures an unmistakable taste in soups, sausage products, and other industrially produced foods with several hundred different spice blends. Almi sterilizes the raw spices itself to maintain high-quality standards at all stages of production. BHS-Sonthofen supplied the complete system, consisting of pneumatic filling, a vertical BHS sterilizer, and a horizontal BHS cooler.

The product quality of foodstuffs and their raw materials depends on the conditions under which they are produced, transported, packaged, and stored. Spices pose a particular challenge: They often come from countries with high temperatures and high humidity. To ensure food safety and consistently high product quality, it is therefore highly important to significantly reduce the germ load of spices.

Killing germs with steam is the safest and only biological method. Unlike other approaches, it is completely harmless to health and preserves the quality of the spices. BHS has developed dynamic spice sterilization to optimally preserve aromas and other positive product properties. It allows product-specific treatment of ground and whole spices. This keeps the products in motion throughout the entire process. All particles are treated with the same intensity, allowing for very short sterilization times. Color, aroma, and taste are fully preserved. After sterilization, the hot spices must cool down quickly. This takes place in a sterile spice cooler. The system can be optimally cleaned to effectively prevent new germ growth after sterilization.

Almi has been using BHS mixers in various sizes for many years to produce its wide range of spice blends. Extensive tests at the BHS Test Center have shown that the treatment of Almi's products with BHS sterilization technology achieves the desired results. The system, which has been adapted to customer requirements in many details, was recently delivered and successfully put into operation.