Effective Cleaning of Plumbing & Disinfection of Water for Mango Processing Plant - Agriculture
Frutico is a mango processing plant in Guatemala. Each season, it receives fruits from different farms for cleaning, disinfection, packing and transportation to their destination, mostly for export. Like all produce for export, they require delicate processing and handling, with high quality requirements, to ensure they reach the market place in good quality and shelf life. The importance of high quality also includes the quality of the water used for processing.
As is typical in produce processing plants, chlorinated water is the primary method of cleaning and disinfecting the fruit, as a means of achieving high quality and long-lasting fruit. However, chlorine-treated foods are banned in Europe, Canada and in increasingly more countries, so a suitable alternative must be used to penetrate those markets.
In this plant, it was quickly determined that there are 3 key processes where the Puroxi products could immediately provide better quality in the processes, as well as reduce costs. Firstly - receiving and cleaning - chlorinated water and a special detergent are used to clean and remove all the latex covering. Secondly - Hydrothermal Disinfection - the fruit is submerged in water at 50 degrees Celsius, for approximately 3 hours to disinfect any internal contaminants. This process is done in several 25,000 litre tanks, where the main challenge is to keep the water hot AND disinfected for several (3) days if possible. Thirdly - ensuring that all equipment and facilities are disinfected throughout the entire plant.
OBJECTIVES:
Main objective for the first process is to increase the effectiveness of the 800 litre water tanks used to clean and disinfect the fruit. Currently, a maximum of 2 truck deliveries can be accommodated, before needing to replace the water. The other objective in this first process is to eliminate the use of detergent to eliminate the latex coating,and further reduce costs.
Main objective for the second process (Hydrothermal) is to maintain 25,000 litre tanks with clean and disinfected water for more than 3 days, thus greatly reducing the cost of changing and heating the water every 3 days.
APPLICATION METHOD:
The test was carried out for both processes and each process had its specific formulation of the Puroxi products to be used. In the
1st case, the Puroxi OB formula was prepared at a higher concentration (ppm) and neither chlorine nor detergent was used to
remove the latex. In the case of the Hydrothermal process, the Puroxi OB formula was prepared without chlorine at a lower
concentration (ppm). The rest of the process was carried out in the same way as the 1st case. In both cases, the water was
constantly monitored to ensure the appropriate concentration of Puroxi OB was maintained. This ensured the purity of the water (from the microbiological point of view), as well as well as color, clarity, and cleanliness.
RESULTS:
The results were clearly evident and satisfactory. In the first process (receiving and cleaning), the use of ONLY Puroxi (OB) gave the same expected quality results, as usual, but WITHOUT using chlorine and detergent. Additionally, the efficiency of the 800 litre water tank was doubled, allowing to use it up to 4 truck deliveries. In the 2nd process (Hydrothermal), it was possible to maintain and recycle the water up to 6 Vx days (compared to 3 days previously), while maintaining the purity and clarity of the water. .
