Tropical fruit processing
Thousands of different types and varieties of tropical fruits are processed into either semi-refined or fully-finished wholesale and retail products by companies throughout the world. Alfa Laval expertise lies in extracting juices from an extensive variety of raw fruits that include coconut (water, milk and cream), pineapple, passion fruit and dates or from viscous purées such as mango, papaya, acerola, guava and banana.
By using Alfa Laval equipment in your tropical fruit processing set-up you
- Make sure your plant is easy to extend, to comply with your changing needs
- Ensure that the juices and purées you produce comply with international standards and requirements, for better sales
- Consistently get the most – and the best – out of all the kinds of fruit you process
- Achieve maximum versatility, to reduce your dependency on any specific crop or crops
- Ensure exceptional plant reliability.
Acerola
Vitamin C powerhouse
Acerola is a tropical fruit-bearing shrub or small tree that is also widely known as the Barbados cherry.
The fruit provides relatively large quantities of juice, and is widely regarded as one of the richest sources of vitamin C in the world, providing about ten times the concentration found in oranges. It also has a very high carotene content, as well as including approx. 3% absorbic acid.
These kinds of health and nutrition benefits are making acerola juice increasing popular on world markets as an ingredient in other juice products.
Perceptions are paramount
When processing acerola fruit into juice, Alfa Laval systems and equipment make it much easier for you to retain all the distinctive natural appearance, aroma and mouthfeel, without removing anything that contributes to the juice’s commercially attractive qualities.
The consumer’s perception is paramount. This is why Alfa Laval acerola processing equipment – also used for a wide range of other fruit, including assaya, papaya, guava and mango – focuses on gentle thermal treatment and effective clarification that enhance perceptions of the qualities of this relatively high-vale fruit.
Banana
Worldwide favourite
The banana is a highly nutritional food crop cultivated extensively in both tropical and subtropical regions, for consumption in markets throughout the world. Bananas are normally processed into purée and pulp, as well as banana flavour and powder, banana jam, etc. In processed form, they are widely used in juices, baby food, confectionery, bakery products and dairy products.
The versatile combination of consistency, taste and nutritional benefits makes banana purée a staple component that’s in widespread demand for juice mixes, smoothies and baby foods.
Efficiency counts
Because banana purée is usually considered a low-margin commodity product, commercial success in international markets tends to depend on efficiency and consistency.
Alfa Laval systems are renowned for being efficient, reliable and easy to operate. We can supply you with the specialist equipment you need to boost efficiency and profit margins in producing banana purée.
Systems like ViscoLine tubular heat exchangers and Contherm scraped-surface heat exchangers are ideal for replacing traditional swept-surface equipment, for example.
Lychee
Long-standing popularity
The lychee is the fruit of a tropical and subtropical tree, and the sole member of the Litchi genus in the soapberry family.
The lychee is the most popular Chinese fruit, and is grown extensively throughout South East Asia, where it has been cultivated for well over a thousand years.
It is widely used in the production of juice products.
Retaining key qualities
Alfa Laval Foodec decanter centrifuges are specially designed to deal with food-industry priorities regarding hygiene and product quality. Unlike traditional high-speed centrifugal separators, these special decanter centrifuges make it easier for you to meet consumer demand for lychee juice with a higher fibre content.
Foodec decanter centrifuges fitted with paring discs also have an important anti-foaming function. Controlling the presence of air helps minimize foaming as well as any risk of oxidation. This in turn helps you retain the colour, flavour and mouthfeel of lychee juice.
Mango
In demand worldwide
The mango is a tropical fruiting tree indigenous to India, but now cultivated in both tropical and subtropical regions for distribution in markets throughout the world.
Mangoes are much in demand for their flavour, fragrance and colour. They are extensively exploited for use as a food as well as purées and juices.
Mango mastery
Alfa Laval provides the technology that enables you to undertake the production of pulp, pulp concentrates, purées, clarified juice and juice concentrates with maximum efficiency. This paves the way to extracting maximum revenue from the pulp and peel.
We also help you deal effectively with individual local problems and issues.
Whatever they may be, we have the mango processing know-how to tackle them.
Tackling black specks
Throughout the world, many mango processing operations are currently confronted with the effects of mango anthracnose fungal infections, more colloquially known as black speck.
Alfa Laval systems, including Foodec decanter centrifuges designed to maintain exceptional hygiene standards and prevent oxidation, have achieved exceptional results in dealing with this problem. This can help any mango processing operation tackle this important challenge.
Improving efficiency
Alfa Laval technologies enable you to achieve significant improvements in both quality and efficiency benchmarks for mango juice production.
With the help of a comprehensive range of the world's most effective systems, you can produce export-standard mango juice with even better quality and at even more competitive prices.
Passion fruit
Adapting to changes
There are more than 500 different varieties of passion fruit, of which 50 are edible and only two are normally considered of major commercial significance.
Grown mainly in Ecuador, the yellow passion fruit provides the highest yield per hectare and is the main variety used for producing juice and concentrate.
Unique qualities
The aroma and taste of passion fruit are so intense that it is usually considered too strong to be used in pure passion fruit juices.
However, these unique qualities make passion fruit juice an ideal ingredient in other fruit drinks, nectars and tropical juice blends.
In juices, passion fruit is the only ingredient that simply cannot be replaced with anything else. High-quality passion fruit juice concentrate therefore has an exceptionally high market value.
World leader
The intense flavour and aroma of passion fruit are, however, extremely delicate. Processing therefore has to be rapid and meticulously controlled, as well as involving a minimum of thermal stress. This requires equipment of an exceptional standard.
Alfa Laval is by far the world's major supplier of systems and equipment for processing passion fruit into juice of export quality. We are also pioneers in applying high-efficiency technologies in processing extremely delicate and aroma-sensitive juices such as passion fruit juice.
These include complete ranges of heat exchangers, disc stack centrifuges, decanter centrifuges, evaporators, clarifiers, and equipment for both aroma recovery and deaeration.
Pineapple
Changing needs
Market requirements regarding pineapple juice are gradually changing. Previously, the main focus was on providing clear juice with a lower pulp content. This was – and is – a job that high-speed disc stack centrifuges can deal with efficiently.
Increasingly, however, the commercial focus is on pineapple juice with a much higher pulp content, reflecting patterns of consumer demand and health awareness. The easiest and most cost-effective way to process high-pulp pineapple juice is with the help of advanced decanter centrifuge technologies available from the market leader in this field – Alfa Laval.
Providing key capabilities
Alfa Laval technologies can play a key role in boosting both the efficiency and the profitability of your pineapple juice processing set-up. We supply a comprehensive range of easily integrated systems ideal for lifting any production facility to a new level.
Compact, low-maintenance AlfaVap rising-film plate evaporators make it possible to concentrate juices with high solids contents.
For a high-value juice product, it is vital to maintain both colour and aroma. Foodec decanter centrifuges fitted with paring discs provide an important anti-foaming function. Controlling the presence of air helps minimize foaming as well as any risk of oxidation that can affect quality.
Aroma recovery
Alfa Laval has a long tradition of working with aroma recovery. This often plays an important role in processing pineapples into juice.