tended period of time. So you’re likely to end up with a more brittle product than you’re used to. Storage, therefore, has a much greater effect on the final product – and storage temperature variations introduce further sensitivity to recrystallization. Pre-storage, therefore, seldom the focus of a margarine production process in the good old trans fat days, has suddenly taken on new significance for the final product’s quality. Now manufacturers need to focus on pre-storage during the first 5 to 7 days following production, making this aspect part of the overall production process. For example, an attempt might be made to to reduce brittleness and ensure consistency by varying pre-storage temperatures from, for example, 21 degrees for the first 5 days then reducing to 16 degrees thereafter. One implication for many manufacturers is the need to invest in pre-storage facilities that can enable the required temperature control. Slower crystallization, therefore, is a manufacturer’s nightmare, imposing both immediate limitations on total production capacity and gradually reduced capacity during production days due to crystallization buildup on chiller shafts. Non-hydrogenated products will have a slower crystallization speed, and interestified products have a tendency to become overworked and very soft. likely to be carefully concocted combinations of crystallizers and emulsifiers. Crystallizers, in particular, can do much to ease the production process. And we’ll take a thorough look at exactly how shortly. That said, crystallizers will not have significant influence on the longer-term storage phase, during which polymorph structure will make for a firmer margarine over time, an aspect that manufacturers will still need to give special attention to in their trans fat-free strategies. WHAT AFFECTS CRYSTALLIZATION IN MARGARINE AND SHORTENING? When chilling begins in the margarine production process, there are, at first, no crystals. Then the first crystals appear, creating a ‘seat’ for more to build upon, finally arriving at a much firmer mass. This firmness needs to be broken down somewhat, restoring plasticity. To tackle this problem, we used one of our pilot plants to start the seating earlier in the process, allowing more time in the machine to reduce post-crystallization time. Longer time in the equipment, however, means greater effect from the pin machine and the following tube chillers, resulting in a quite different product. In our trials, we compared hydrogenated, interesterified fat, and unhydrogenated fat in puff pastry margarine. Hydrogenated fat, as might be expected, performed best, crystallizing quickly. Far slower to crystallize, unhydrogenated fats such as palm oil clearly perform worst. In fact, both before and after the pin machine it was hopelessly overworked, and would be impossible to pack or, for that matter, to eat. The interesterified fat medium crystallized well, but again was all too easy to overwork. EXPLORING TRANS FAT-FREE PRODUCTION STRATEGIES To get to the bottom of the case for these ingredients as the toolbox of choice for food manufacturers facing the trans fat ban, we first needed to gain a better understanding of crystallization processes in margarine oils and fats. We were particularly keen to find out how various process parameters affected the speed and nature of crystallization. Equipped with this knowledge, we would then be able to properly examine the role played by emulsifiers in relation to crystallization, and to make recommendations to margarine manufacturers based on our findings. And we set the bar high: our tests would be conducted with one of the most difficult beasts in the business: puff pastry margarine. IN STEP CRYSTALLIZERS AND EMULSIFIERS With widespread attention on the ill effects of trans fats, US food manufacturers and their European counterparts now need to come up with trans fat-free recipes that give margarine’s batch-by-batch quality the best possible chance of success. According to Palsgaard’s application center research into the area, and our lengthy experience in the first-to-move European market, that particular ‘something’ is most Liquid margarine with Palsgaard crystallizer Liquid margarine without Palsgaard crystallizer 3
Download PDF fil