Maintaining food quality is crucial in the food processing industry, and filtration can play a large role in reducing spoilage. Implementing suitable filtration solutions helps to keep food and beverages fresher for longer, increasing shelf life and ensuring product quality.
The most commonly used type of filtration technology is mechanical filtration. Other types of filtration technologies include reverse osmosis, nanofiltration, and ultrafiltration.
Filtration can be used to remove physical, chemical, and biological contaminants as well as microorganisms. It is widely used in the food and beverage industry to remove contaminants from raw materials, products, and packaging.
This article will introduce the filtration process and industry standards for filtration systems. It will also describe how filtration can benefit the food and beverage industry.
The food and beverage industry faces enormous challenges as consumers and legislators demand ever-increasing levels of safety and quality control. High cleanliness standards and strict contamination control effectively ensure the production of high-quality products, significantly reduce waste and minimize product spoilage.
Filtration is a critical step in beverage production. It provides a safe and economical way to remove impurities and extend the shelf life of many consumer products. Proper filtration systems are essential to ensure product biosafety, quality, and shelf life, and to protect process equipment.
There are 3 main filtration stages:
Pre-filtration refers to the removal of unwanted large particles (coarse filtration) so that the filter material is clearly visible. For example, in the production process of soda water, some of the raw materials used may contain particles that affect the quality and appearance of the final product. This process can use the bag filter housing with a filter bag and depth filter element provided by Brother Filtration, such as melt blown filter element and wire wound filter.
Fine filtration refers to the use of pleated filter cartridges with a filtration accuracy of 1 to 33 microns according to the beverage composition (solid content, turbidity, microorganisms). Polypropylene and glass fiber pleated elements feature low-pressure drop, high load capacity and efficiency. Glass fiber pleated filters are also good for removing smog because of the inherent positive charge of the media.
Sterile filtration is the final filtration step before bottling to clarify beverages and remove residual yeast and microbial contaminants. Potentially infectious pathogens such as Cryptosporidium, Giardia lamblia, diatomaceous earth, and diatom flour are prime targets for removal as they can cause bottle fermentation, cloudiness, and interfere with beverage preservation. 0.45 or 0.2 micron pleated membrane filter removes microbial contaminants.
In addition to these three main filtration steps, compliance with beverage quality and regulations is equally important. The threshold of the beverage industry is constantly increasing, and the requirements for the production technology and product quality of beverages are also strict.
Brother Filtration provides optimized filtration solutions and products for the production of different beverage products, improving product quality while reducing production and operation costs.
Filtration has many benefits and plays a key role in maintaining food freshness, extending product shelf life, and enhancing or improving food flavor. As such, all aspects of the food and beverage industry rely on it extensively. Examples of how filtering technologies are used and benefited from in these industries are as follows:
Consumers gravitate toward robust, clear wines free from sediment and cloudiness. Filtration techniques used in wine production include clarification or trap filtration, which removes earthy fines and particles and “polishes” the wine.
Fine filtration, which removes yeast and is often used as a pre-sterilization process. Sterile membrane filtration, which removes spoilage microorganisms.
Beer filtration is centered on the continuous removal of particles that can negatively affect the appearance and flavor of the final product.
Beer filtration involves many steps, going through clarification and fine filtration similar to wine, with close attention paid to the final clarification and bottling steps. Sterilization processes used in beer production include sterile membrane filtration and cold stabilization.
Beverage filtration in most industries is similar, there are just a few different steps that make them different.
The main thing we look for when examining beverage filters is their ability to maintain a safe, drinkable product while removing large particles and sediment that can cause health safety concerns and off-taste.
Soda, water, and juice all use methods similar to beer and wine filtration to distribute a product that consumers will continue to enjoy.
The filtration process in the dairy and food processing industries is very similar and processes filtration in steps: Water Filtration this step is more used for the sterilization of equipment and the containers used to hold and store the product. Clean, uncontaminated water helps stabilize end products and extend their shelf life.
The pre-filter provides protection and enhances the capabilities of the main filter. In other stages similar to the beverage industry, such as clarification, filtration and clarification control to ensure the health and taste of the food.
In the food and beverage processing industry, the hygiene and quality of the components involved in the filtration process are at the forefront.
Apart from the superior quality of our filter media, Brother Filtration has always met high standards, our pursuit has always been to manufacture high quality products, not only our products meet the high demands but also our factories are certified.
Our products have obtained the following certifications:
Filtration has always been an important part of the food and beverage industry, keeping food fresh and safe for consumers. The industry relies heavily on the separation of liquids and solids through membranes (porous materials) using filtration systems. It helps remove contaminants from food and beverage products and also helps improve the quality of these products.
Brother Filtration designs and manufactures containers and filter elements for the beverage industry and is committed to providing high performance filtration systems and products designed to meet the highest quality standards and the most stringent industry requirements. Contact us today for more information or to request a quote.
