Forming, battering & crumbing.

Euro-Food Machinery of Elmswell, Suffolk are pleased to announce that they have recently moved to larger premises to accommodate their growing business which has brought together agencies from a number of well-known European food machinery makers, two of which enable food manufacturers to obtain complete lines for forming, battering and crumbing and frying of all types of meat and other products from a single source.

The world's first completely hydraulic multi-outlet patty machine, suitable for beef, pork, poultry, veal, fish, lamb or even potatoes, provides a system which eliminates common problems such as bridging and overworking, the product is not rolled, not tumbled, but instead a rotating spiral gently moves the product towards the rotor. Mold plates can be changed over in under five minutes.

The Rotoform 745 model from Provatec in Switzerland, is a newly designed automatic forming and portioning machine with a working width of 400mm. With a new rotary fill technique and hydraulic drive system which is microprocessor controlled, and is infinitely variable, the system ensures gentle filling of the product without any mixing effect, thus allowing the product to retain both its structure and colour, with portions keeping their shape whether raw, fried or cooked. The principle of the machine is that the spiral in the hopper moves the product to the rotor, the mold plate moves under the rotor, the programme controlled rotor starts within a split-second and fills the mold plate with product until the fill pressure for that particular product is reached, additionally there is no back flow, the mold plate is pushed forward and the portion knocked onto the conveyor belt.

When commencing operations, the rotor can be completely filled so that even the first few portions are perfect and usuable. Minimal product working is achieved through a vane pump feed system. The equipment is both simple to operate and also quick and easy to dismantle for thorough cleaning.

The Rotoform 760 model is a molding and portioning machine using the same revolutionary rotor filling technique for exact weight and even portioning of hamburgers, nuggets, rib patties, croquettes etc. The machine can be used for moulding meat, fish, poultry, potatoes etc and has a usable width of 600mm, allowing it to be integrated optimally into suitable production lines. With portioning speeds of 10 - 75 strokes per minute and a capacity of 3200 kg per hour, the standard equipment has a mold plate of up to six holes and a mesh-belt exit conveyor. Accessories include inter-leaving, roll-out attachment and croquette device with alternative exit conveyors in neoprene of shuttle versions.

Further processing for breading, battering and cooking comes from Meyn in Holland. The new version of the BUS-NP breading machine is capable of handling almost every type of crumb available. The machine has been completely re-engineered for quick and convenient cleaning, since the drives, switch-box and cabling are now integrated into the frame, thus avoiding removal, and speeding cleaning time dramatically. In order to meet the most stringent hygiene standards, all plastic tubes have been replaced with stainless steel. The BUS-NP boasts an auger pipe which can be split vertically with a quick release system, a pneumatic underlayer control and an extended underlayer-bed ensuring an excellent bottom coverage of the product. Furthermore the machine is equipped with an automatic crumb supply stop in case the wirebelt becomes obstructed.

Also on offer are a range of hot air ovens which are not only capable of fully cooking product, but also of obtaining the highest yields. The two models are available in linear as well as spiral versions and both have two cooking zones with separate temperature and humidity control in each zone. The Meyn fryer enjoys integrated heating elements in the belt frame resulting in minimal oil content and reduced cleaning time due to the ease of access to the kettle bottom. Special non-welded kettle-bottom design allowing the fryer to remain rigid and straght under all circumstances. The exhaust pipe is mounted on the side of the fryer. The system uses a liquid based fire extinguishing system which is extremely safe, the liquid fire suppressant causes a chemical reaction with the burning oil and the oil becomes non-flammable, ensuring the fire cannot restart.