Weighing and Detection
quality confectionery products. Importantly, the inspection equipment gives confectionery manufacturers inspection data in real-time, allowing them to intervene and make adjustments as necessary early in the process, saving time and costs. Product handling can also pose a challenge to sorting systems too, Christian Hofsommer, Area Sales Manager at TOMRA explains: “Each company has its own requirements and environmental conditions, which means that standard requirements are always supplemented by specific requirements, depending on origin of products, channels of supply, or production changes (perhaps because of product innovations). Our machines can be located on the line before or after
the product is oiled, depending on the factory layout, but oiling can make the product sticky and sorting trickier. This demands a very particular type of product handling. We resolve this by using specialised feeding and discharge systems. These ensure the smooth product flow essential to achieving the best sorting performance.”
“it is getting more difficult in many parts of the world for confectionery producers to
recruit and retain workers for tasks such as sorting”
How is the market developing?
As per the study of Maximize Market Research, the optical sorter market was worth USD 2.31 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 3.30 billion by 2027, with a CAGR of 5.5% by 2027. The growing need to increase manufacturing capacity by decreasing delivery and processing time is driving up demand for optical sorters in the food industry. Various regions’ governments are getting increasingly concerned about food safety. Sensor-based optical sorters can identify and eliminate foreign matter, unwanted rot, forestation faults, and damage regularly. The food industry held the greatest share of the optical
sorter market, and MMR believes this predominance is expected to continue over the forecast period. Growing demand for high-quality food with a faster time delivery, strict food safety laws, and automation are all primarily driving the rise of food sector applications. Stephan gives us an insight into the types of image processing solutions available, and what they are best suited for: “Colour image processing is a technology that can detect foreign particles as long as they are a different colour to the product. It can be used to detect impurities in
26 Kennedy’s Confection April 2022
KennedysConfection.com
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