Pall claims that its Microflow XL membrane system can provide a more cost efficient means of ensuring salting for both hard and soft cheeses, while also replacing traditional pre-coat technology normally required for such processes.
A spokesperson for Pall told DairyReporter.com that brine solutions are commonly used in cheese production for salting products, but require frequent cleaning to maintain hygiene standards.
During this process, the company says that soft and hard cheeses can spend between days up to several months respectively in the same brine ‘pool’ to allow salt to penetrate a cheese product. The group added that ensuring hygienic processing was therefore vital for such products.
In order to meet industry needs, the Pall spokesperson added that the Microflow XL system uses easy to clean PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) hollow fibre membranes.
This design allows for high flux rates that can simplify cleaning systems by halving water usage, cutting chemical requirements by 30 per cent and shortening the total time required to complete the process, the manufacturer claims.
The group spokesperson says these reductions are possible without compromising safety or processor safety.
“Filtering the brine with a Microflow system efficiently prevents potential contamination and turbidity increase,” stated the spokesperson. “It brings longer shelf life to the brine and reduces volumes of waste.”
In attempting to provide more cost efficient means of using brine in cheese production, the group says it will continue to work on providing user-friendly hygiene products, particularly in the field of automated systems.
To further play up this user friendly focus, the company claims that the system can be integrated into a large number of existing cheese plants without causing major difficulties.