There’s no doubt that compressed air plays a key role in food and beverage processing behind the scenes. Compressed air can be used for packaging and preparing, below we discuss the many applications air compressors are used for!
Mixing
Compressed air is used to mix foods that are delicate such as cereal or Chex Mix. This is a clean and efficient way to get the job done.
Cleaning, Filling and Sealing
Cleanliness is of the upmost importance in the food industry. Compressed air is used to clean bags, cans, bottles etc. before filling them with the product. Compressed air is sometimes used to blow food through tubes to fill these containers. Lastly, they can be used to seal bags and jars. One of the most well-known forms of packaging is the pressurized air inside of chip bags. The air is pushed inside of the bag to keep the chips from being crushed.
Cooling and Freezing
Compressed air is used to cool products quickly after they’ve been cooked or baked. This makes the process more efficient, and packaging moves along quickly. Essentially the same thing is used with even colder, dry air to quickly freeze products.
Cutting
Using streams of clean compressed air can be used to both peel and cut foods. This is a clean efficient way to cut things without using blades that must be cleaned. Common foods might include fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
Compressed Air in The Beverage Industry
Cleaning, Filling and Sealing
Just like compressed air is used to clean, fill, and seal containers of food it’s used the same way with cans and bottles containing beverages.
Fermenting
This is a little-known use for compressed air, adding oxygen to the liquid helps speed up the fermentation process.
Sterilization
Ozone gas is used to sterilize water which is created through compressed air and used to remove minerals.
Moving/Dispensing
Similarly, to the food industry, compressed air moves liquid through tubes and into its containers in a clean manner. Soda fountains use compressed air to move the liquid through tubes and out into the customer’s cup. Compressed air is also used in kegs to push the beer through the hose.
Thawing
While compressed air is used to cool food, it’s also used to thaw beverages such as juice. Juice is often frozen for the shipping process and thawed with warm compressed air before being bottled.