COCOA & CHOCOLATE PROCESSING
“Post-pandemic we are seeing the consumer demand for
‘clean labels’ and ‘all natural’ products growing at an even faster pace than before the pandemic. In cocoa processing in particular, as I have already mentioned, this relates to the use of alkalising agents...but these alkalising agents do play a key role in developing flavour so it is an interesting conundrum and we are sure that the search for all natural, clean label alternatives for alkalising agents will continue.”
Control advances
Moving further down the chocolate processing production line, the most important developments in recent years, relating to conches and refining machines, have centred around advances in process control, according to Mauro Valentini, Cocoa and Chocolate Engineering Manager at SACMI Packaging & Chocolate. Today these important steps in chocolate production are fitted with smart sensors which can relay a host of processing data that helps ensure a consistent and repeatable quality product quality. The main outcome of advanced process control – especially
during the initial stages of chocolate preparation, refining and conching – is homogeneous efficiency and quality, regardless of upstream supplies of raw materials and the intrinsic variations in their characteristics. “It is important to remember that chocolate is a ‘living’ product, made from raw materials with somewhat variable characteristics and it has traditionally been a challenge to ensure repeatability of product quality due to the variability of these raw materials,” says Mauro.
26 Kennedy’s Confection July 2022
“Roasting is a really critical process step for full flavour development. Amadori
compounds, formed during the fermentation process, develop into cocoa aroma under high temperatures”
I ask Mauro how it is possible to achieve greater continuity
of the finished product given the challenges presented by the variability of raw materials. He answers: “First of all continuity can be achieved by accurately controlling the conditions and quantities of the raw materials – both liquid and powder – that are fed into the mixer. One of our most interesting solutions is an automatic system that monitors the granulometry of the chocolate exiting the refiner. Simple and linear, this system continuously monitors all the relevant parameters. In turn, the incoming data is used to adjust the machine, creating a feedback loop that ensures the required product refinement is maintained at all times.”
KennedysConfection.com
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