Machinery technology plays a key role in determining the texture and flavor of vegan and vegetarian products.This is where K+G Wetter’s vacuum cutters excel:
• Less denaturation: the cooling effect of the vacuum protects sensitive plant proteins from excessive temperatures.
• Better binding and consistency: vacuum optimizes water binding and allows for longer protein chains.
Intensified flavor: under vacuum conditions, aromas from herbs and spices are more effectively released and evenly distributed.
• Longer shelf life: fewer air pockets—and thus less oxygen in the product—keep foods tasty and fresh significantly longer, even without additional preservatives.
A real-world example: K+G Wetter customer Tress Lebensmittel GmbH & Co. KG produces vegan organic ready-made meals made from regional ingredients under the Tressbrüder label. Among other items, the long-established company from Zwiefalten in the Swabian Alb offers purely plant-based currywurst and meatballs, gyros, chicken curry, and goulash.
For processing plant-based proteins, Tress relies on the VCM 120 Hygienic Secure vacuum cutter from K+G Wetter for efficient processing:
• The vacuum function: through intermittent vacuuming and corresponding evacuation, the ingredients in the VCM 120 are intensively kneaded and bound together. At the same time, the vacuum removes air pockets from the product, thereby preventing an undesirable spongy texture. With the right knowledge and processing time, emulsification of plant-based proteins can thus be achieved even without chemical additives.
The removable baffle: the baffle creates a compressed cutting chamber—for high shear force from the knifes and optimal emulsification. Without the baffle, the entire cutting chamber in the knife cover is utilized. This creates less friction and a lower temperature increase, resulting in a clearer cut pattern.
Production control with CutControl: the program developed by K+G Wetter stores recipes and processing steps in detail, enabling finely tuned control of the processing. The advantages: quality remains consistently reproducible from batch to batch. Thanks to the stored program steps, other tasks can be performed in parallel—making work with CutControl particularly efficient.
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