Protein Problem Solver: First in U.S. meat industry
Interstate Meat switches blender chilling to liquid nitrogen -- a new option for bottom injection (BI).
Interstate Meat Distributors Inc. (Clackamas, Ore.) processes more than 60 million pounds of ground beef and sausage a year, packaged in case ready trays, overwrap, fresh patties, IQF patties and chubs for distribution throughout the western U.S. Chilling during grinding/blending can dramatically impact throughput of forming operations, so the chilling system must be carefully matched for batch-to-batch repeatability.
Batch grinding/mixing operations also add thermal energy to the product. Most high-volume processors of ground meat and poultry have been chilling in mixing/blending vessels fitted with carbon dioxide (CO2), the only real choice for bottom-injection (BI) in the U.S. Interstate Meat president Darrin Hoy says Interstate first started using CO2 chilling in the mid-1980s.
While some processors still use CO2 snow horns or pellets, top-chilling methods are inherently less efficient. Top-chill snow horns may require 3X more time and 20-25% more cryogen to achieve the same desired temperature as BI systems.
New BI systems are normally installed with new mixing or forming equipment, though existing mixers even just a few years old can dramatically benefit from retrofits, which typically involve components such as nozzles and vent.
Interstate worked with Linde North America to beta test the ACCU-CHILL® liquid-nitrogen (LIN) BI system on one of the plant’s mixers -- in this case a 10K lbs/hr blender. Linde application engineers documented existing chilling process parameters, and designed a new hygienic nozzle injection system for multiple ports on the blending vessel, and a new exhaust system for the lid to make it a complete, matched system.