野菜ジュース・ピュレの製造
ますます多くの市場で野菜ジュースやピュレの需要が高まっているのは、自然で健康に良い食品への関心が世界的に高くなっていることを示しています。アルファ・ラバルの専門技術は、抽出から、清澄化や果肉制御、さらに濃縮まで（このようにしてピュレや透明または混濁濃縮ジュースが生産されます）と広範囲です。人参、ビート、南瓜は、そうしたジュースやピュレに加工される代表的な作物です。
アルファ・ラバルは、清澄化、濃縮、殺菌およびアセプティック充填を通じて混濁果汁を透明な果汁に加工するために鍵となる機器を提供します。同様の機能が、あらゆる種類の根菜からピュレ製品を作る上で不可欠な脱気、殺菌、アセプティック充填プロセスで利用できます。
アルファ・ラバルの機器の中では以下のシステムがよく使用されています：人参のマッシュの加熱に使用されるViscoLineチューブ式熱交換器、第1段抽出と第2段抽出の両方でマッシュから果汁を抽出する衛生水準の高いFoodecデカンター式遠心機、低温で製品を急速濃縮するためのAlfaVap薄膜上昇式プレートエバポレーター。
ピュレ加工で広く使用されているその他のアルファ・ラバル機器として、新型メンブレン濾過と、HTST（高温短時間殺菌）処理用の電気殺菌があります。後者は、充填・包装前に、汚れがあり熱に弱く酸が少ないピュレでの使用に適しています。
Carrots
Wide variety
The carrot is the second most popular vegetable in the world after the potato, with hundreds of varieties grown to meet particular soil and climate conditions – and different market requirements.
For use in worldwide consumer markets, carrots are normally processed into single-strength or concentrated cloudy juice, or into single-strength purée.
Gentle handling
Carrot juice is a delicate product that requires careful attention to keep both the flavour and colour fresh and attractive. Alfa Laval technologies are ideal for processing juices that are relatively viscous and with a high fibre content.
Acidified carrot juice has to be pasteurized, while neutral carrot juice undergoes UHT treatment.
Alfa Laval provides both specialist equipment and complete processing lines that you can use to boost both the quality and profitability of carrot juice products.
The decanter advantage
Foodec decanter centrifuges are able to produce a juice that features intense colour with a high yield. An additional advantage is that they make it easy to regulate the pulp content of the juice during production, and also ensure the highest possible yields and carotenoid content.
Alfa Laval decanter centrifuges are available with sophisticated control systems. They can also be equipped with inert gas systems to ensure that the colour and taste of the carrot juice is not affected during processing.
High-efficiency equipment
Among the Alfa Laval systems frequently used are ViscoLine tubular heat exchangers for heating the carrot mash, high-hygiene Foodec decanter centrifuges that extract the juice from mash as both first-stage and second-stage extraction, and AlfaVap rising film plate evaporators for rapidly condensing the product at low temperatures.
Other widely used equipment includes advanced membrane filtration technology, and SteriTherm VLA aseptic heat treatment for use prior to filling and packaging.
Leaf vegetables
Multifunctional benefits
Leaf vegetables is the category of vegetables in which the leaves are the main part used for human consumption. There are approximately one thousand known species of plants whose leaves are generally considered edible. In general terms, there are notable similarities between the many types in terms of both nutritional properties and preparation methods.
Correspondingly, much the same equipment is used for processing different leaf vegetables into juice and purée products. These are then often used as ingredients in other products, such as vegetable juices.
Gentle handling
In order to maintain the nutritional value of juice and purée products made from leafy vegetables such as cauliflower, celery and spinach, processing must be extremely gentle and under stringent control as well as subject to strict hygiene standards.
High-efficiency equipment
Among the Alfa Laval systems frequently used are Foodec decanter centrifuges, which enable you to maintain full control of the levels of suspended solids in the juice before evaporation.
Alfa Laval ViscoLine tubular heat exchangers are also widely used because these substantially increase the efficiency and controllability of heat transfer. This means heating and cooling can be done as gently as possible, to the benefit of your product quality.
Root vegetables
Gritty business
Because root vegetables are normally grown in soil, the initial stages of processing usually focus on quickly and effectively removing soil, grit and other contaminants.
In this sense – among others – the equipment used for processing root vegetables into juice and purée is broadly similar to that used for processing apples into juice.
Versatility counts
For use in worldwide consumer markets, a broad spectrum of root vegetables can be processed into:
- single-strength cloudy juice
- concentrated cloudy juice
- single-strength purée.
Reed beets can be processed into clear juice using advanced membrane filtration technology, a specialist field in which Alfa Laval excels.
From cloudy to clear
Alfa Laval also supplies key equipment for processing cloudy juice into clear juice via clarification, concentration, sterilization and aseptic filling.
Similar capabilities are available for the deaeration, sterilization and aseptic filling processes essential for making purée products derived from all kinds of root vegetables.
Viscous, high in fibre
Numerous Alfa Laval technologies are ideal for processing juices and purées that are relatively viscous and have a high fibre content.
Alfa Laval provides both specialist equipment and complete processing lines that you can use to boost both the quality and profitability of juice products made from root vegetables.