Metal detector validation
One of the leading manufacturers of fruit preparations in Germany, has leveraged its vast experience, creativity and flexibility for over 50 years to produce semifinished and finished products for the ice cream, baking, dairy, beverage and chocolate industries. These products are sold through food retailers and also to the food service industry. The company’s business units are divided into fruit preparations/purees, fruit in alcohol and fresh convenience products such as fruit salads.
Driven by inventiveness, innovation, experience and state-of-the-art production processes, the quality of these first-class products is underscored by numerous renowned certifications such as IFS Food and BIO.
The problem: Complying with food safety laws and regulations.
Naturally, coping with limited resources requires sustainable management and technological innovations. Global competition and stricter regulations, moreover, further increase the pressure to constantly innovate technologically in order to boost productivity and profitability. Laws and regulations, meanwhile, require the use of inspection equipment in food production. Continuously complying with these regulations often creates major challenges for customers, such as dealing with the technology itself, a lack of knowledge about its correct handling and managing standards that vary from country to country.
Many customers face the problem of lacking the knowledge of which setting parameters can cause a significant change in product safety and process relevance. A validation process can aid these customers to overcome this challenge and take a successful path towards compliance with food safety standards. Such as process can also be used as a service.
The solution: manufacturer validation with validation certificate.
Validation takes place at the beginning of the life cycle of a product inspection system – that is, after initial installation but before release for commercial production. It represents an initial qualification of a device based on the specified functional descriptions. Validation provides evidence that the selected device, when used correctly, is capable of meeting the specified targets in all cases. Such specifications may relate to detection accuracy, but also to other functions such as the correct operation of the ejection device.
According to International Featured Standards (IFS), validation is the confirmation, based on objective evidence, that requirements for the specific intended use or application are being met. The Codex Alimentarius Commission, meanwhile, defines validation as the provision of evidence that a control measure, or a combination of control measures, when properly implemented, can achieve both hazard control and specified result.
Manufacturer validation is conducted by a service engineer at the end customer‘s premises. While it may take place at the same time as the commissioning of the equipment, during maintenance or at a special validation appointment, on-site manufacturer validation is targeted to be carried out after commissioning. It takes place when the equipment is already running stably, and specifically addresses the needs and requirements of the customer. The validation certificate issued is unique, because it provides proof of normal distribution and another threshold or checkpoint for daily routine testing. It also serves as proof for the customer of annual maintenance and supports the daily routine tests.
The customer benefit: Repeatable performance of body testing with evaluation and documentation.
Typically, re-validation must be performed when significant changes are made to a metal detector. However, re-validation can be avoided if, after validation, when a test body is placed on the ground the value no longer falls below the lower limit value. For instance, there would be no need for re-validation if the product angle, the conveyor speed or the sensitivity are changed and it turns out tha t the specified detection range is maintained. The upper range can be neglected, as a higher detection of the test bodies is advantageous. If a validation certificate is available, re-validations are not necessary.
The bottom line is that validation helps to avoid food waste, conserve resource and increase productivity and thus profitability.
X-ray technology to find stones
EUROVERDE uses X-ray technology to find the smallest stones in soups
.EUROVERDE Societa Agricola in Azzano Mella in the province of Brescia in Lombardy stands for tradition and craftsmanship in vegetable growing. For more than 60 years of experience, the family business today refines a wide variety of vegetables and lettuces into top-quality products in three farms with more than 100 employees and a cultivated area of 200 hectares. In line with the best agricultural cultivation practices, EUROVERDE continuously invests in technological innovations. In this way, the highest quality and safety standards are maintained, sustainability and traceability are achieved - basic prerequisites for the continuous growth of the company.
Specializing in the production of ready meals, soup and salads, EUROVERDE subjects all fresh products to the least possible processing after harvesting in order to maintain hygienic safety, taste and nutritional values.
The company has multiple certifications, including BRC and IFS Food. In 2017, EUROVERDE also obtained organic certification as a manufacturer of ready meals.
The problem: Natural ingredients such as stones, can affect the quality of the final products
EUROVERDE‘s entire product range is the result of a quality process at the highest level. In the field of foreign matter management, EUROVERDE has been using various metal detectors for years to separate metal particles of any kind from the products.
However, when processing fresh food from the field, the risk that natural components, such as stones, remain in the product could be high, compromising the safety and quality of the product.
The solution: Using X-ray technology to find all foreign bodies, not just metals.
In the food industry, quality has top priority and EUROVERDE also takes the safety of its products very seriously. In order to detect not only metal particles, but also the smallest stones, the company was looking for a reliable solution and found it in X-ray technology. X-ray inspection systems detect all foreign bodies in food that differ in density from the product being inspected.
After extensive comparisons, the choice fell on an X-ray system from Sesotec: RAYCON EX1 is the entry-level model for X-ray inspection of packaged products. With integrated ejection, it has a very short and compact design. It is the best choice for all food producers and processors who value a balanced ratio of price, performance and quality.
Customer benefits: Improving product quality through X-ray inspection
Since the installation of the X Ray machines, many stones have been found, they are able to detect smaller pieces, even with half of the size as before. „EUROVERDE adheres to the family tradition of producing only safe products of the highest quality. Therefore, we strive to optimize the production processes with the best technologies. With Sesotec‘s X-ray technology, we have found the support we need to tackle the stone problem and meet our quality requirements,“ says Benedetta Manzini, EUROVERDE Quality Assurance.
X-ray Tuna filet processing (Indonesia)
Sesotec RAYCON with high-performance and long-life X-ray tubes for high detection requirements.
A processor of cooked and frozen tuna filet, active on the Indonesian market for almost 10 years, exports its products to other Asian countries to Europe and to the USA. The company processes 25,000 t of tuna every year in a factory built according to international standards.
The company is convinced that the key to success is a balance in the chain of supplier, producer and consumer. Therefore, their mission is to grow step by step together with their suppliers and to achieve the satisfaction of their customers for whom health and food safety have priority. Sesotec with its RAYCON X-Ray inspection system contributes to the improvement of food purity.
In this case the concrete detection requirements were particularly high and at the same time it was not allowed to change the dimensions of the inspected tuna blocks. This could be met thanks to the flexible configuration of the X-Ray inspection system in a version with 80 KV X-ray source. The customer can now inspect his standard blocks and benefits from highest detection accuracy – no matter whether the contaminants are metals, stones, glass or plastics whose specific density differs from the density of tuna.
“Our requirements for the detection of contaminations were very high but the constant reliability that the RAYCON system demonstrated in the tests compared to competitor systems made the decision easy for us,“ say the Production Manager.
AZO invests in the GF4000
AZO provides food processors, who are legally required to take effective safety measures against contaminants, with high-quality machinery and systems which help ensure that their products comply with the relevant standards.
For AZO systems Sesotec metal separators are a must Inspection begins with bulk material delivery prior to the bulk silos to remove contaminants as early as possible. The latest metal detectors and separators offer a range of functions other than basic metal detection and are, nowadays, fully integrated quality assurance instruments. Sesotec supplies AZO with metal separation equipment that specifically meet the high demands for bulk material handling in the food industry
