FEATURE FOCUS: FOOD & BEVERAGE
Premium meat snack maker beefs up production with scavenger inspection technology
metal detectors. To solve this, Fortress installed its
unique Scavenger software onto each Phantom metal detector. This enables Meatsnacks to simultaneously inspect for metal contaminants in addition to confirming whether each of the thousands of packs processed daily contains an oxygen scavenger. “The only other option presented by another supplier was a metal detector with two heads. This would have been a bulkier machine and incurred higher maintenance costs,” says Stephenson. Meatsnacks also ruled out x-ray, partly
To cope with heightened demand for its high protein, low fat, air dried and cooked and smoked meat snacks, the Meatsnacks Group invested in three Phantom metal detectors from Fortress Technology as it was the only food inspection provider to offer a system that could filter out the signal generated by iron filings from each packet’s scavenger oxygen absorber
I
nstalled shortly after the merger of The Jerky Group and Cruga in August 2015,
the Meatsnacks Group recently placed an order for two more Phantom metal detectors for its Milton Keynes factory. The company has another Fortress Phantom already operational in its Forres jerky production facility in the Scottish Highlands. Between them, the two facilities currently process, pack, inspect and distribute thousands of packs of jerky and biltong a day. Authenticity and quality are integral
across all the biltong and jerky brands, emphasises David Stephenson, engineering manager at the Meatsnacks Group, Milton Keynes production site. “Several years ago we switched from importing beef from Uruguay to sourcing high quality silverside cuts closer to home. Our beef biltong and jerky is now wholly UK produced using the very best silverside we can source.”
LONGER SHELF LIFE Prior to installing the three conveyor-style Fortress metal detectors, the BRC- accredited food producer says their Milton
8 APRIL 2019 | FACTORY EQUIPMENT
Keynes operation increasingly relied on contractors to hand pack and seal packets of biltong. “Now we have three fully automated lines, which checkweigh, fill packs, insert the scavenger and inspect for metal contaminants,” reports Stephenson. “It has given us increased capacity, with our three lines now running non-stop 11- hours a day, six days a week.” In order to maintain the shelf life of up
to 18 months and protect the products from spoilage, Meatsnacks Group insert the scavenger absorber into every packet of jerky and biltong. “We find it’s more effective than gas flushing, and it’s a less complex process for extending shelf life and limiting the growth of aerobic spoilage organisms. Scavengers, which are especially popular in the US market, also protect against loss of colour and flavour,” says Stephenson. Scavengers are easy to insert and
irreversibly absorb oxygen inside sealed packaging to less than 0.01 per cent. However, because they contain fine powered iron filings, they present a challenge to food inspection
Fortress Technology
www.fortresstech
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The Fortress Phantom metal detectors filter out the signal generated by iron fillings
because they are more expensive, but also due to the fact that contaminant risks are more likely to be metal. Stephenson explains: “We process tonnes of beef every week, therefore physical contaminants could range from buck shot in the meat to fragments of stainless steel from processing equipment. However, we are extremely risk aware. As testimony, every 15 minutes we stop and check our slicing machines and our Quality Assurance team runs metal test pieces though the metal detector to check the reject system is functioning properly.” To maximise sensitivity, Fortress
supplied an aperture measuring 350mm by 125mm, which accommodates both the small and larger biltong and jerky packs. “Machine set up for each product changeover is extremely straightforward,” reports Stephenson. “There’s a programme for each product and different sized pack. “To recalibrate, our operatives simply
press a button, pass a pack without the scavenger absorber in it through the metal detector, and then one with a scavenger in it. The pack with the scavenger in it provides the signal benchmark, and then anything above this calibrated signal indicates that there’s a metal contaminant and the pack would be rejected. Equally, the Fortress software can tell if there’s no scavenger absorber in a pack, enabling our operatives to remove and empty the product into the hopper for repacking, which saves on waste.” With all of the UK’s major grocery
chains already stockists, Meatsnacks Group looks set to beef up its market reach and retain its edge for innovation. “Having a fully automated packing and metal detection inspection line will enable us to meet European demand as our product range and the number of stockists and specialist markets we supply expands,” concludes Stephenson.
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