Sustainability in dairy processing isn’t just an aspirational goal anymore. It is a must for day-to-day operations.
Contact us if you are interested in a sustainability assessment of your system.
Implementing sustainable practices makes it possible to navigate government regulations, consumer sentiment and resource availability. Sustainability improvements can also positively affect a dairy facility’s bottom line, improving energy efficiency and saving money on resources like water, as well as waste disposal costs.
Caloris can assist with implementing sustainable practices in your dairy operation. Our membrane filtration, evaporation and spray drying solutions offer myriad opportunities to improve efficiency within your facility.
Membrane Filtration
Our filtration units are often used for recovery and reuse of water from milk and whey processing, allowing dairies to significantly reduce overall water consumption. Compared to other processes, membrane filtration is very energy efficient, particularly for concentration tasks.
If waste reduction is a concern for your operation, membrane filtration can be used for the concentration and fractionation of milk components. This allows for better use of milk constituents, reducing waste.
Evaporation
Our modern MVR evaporation systems have significantly reduced energy requirements compared to older technologies.
Possibly one of the biggest sustainability advantages of evaporation for dairy processing is the conservation of water. The condensate that results from the evaporation process can be recovered and reused, reducing water consumption. By efficiently concentrating the product stream, less volume needs to be processed further down the production line, saving energy in downstream operations.
Another huge sustainability boon for dairies can be realized by using evaporation to concentrate wastewater. This is another chance to recapture and reuse clean condensate water elsewhere in the operation. The total volume of the waste stream that needs to be processed is drastically reduced, further saving money (and possible regulatory headaches) for the operation.
Spray Drying
Spray drying is an energy-intensive process, but it too can contribute to a dairy operation’s sustainability efforts.
Notably, spray drying offers a means for product preservation that extends the shelf life of a fragile product. Converting liquid dairy products to stable powders helps reduce food waste. Many dairy processors also use spray dryers to create value-added dairy products, further reducing waste by utilizing dairy streams that may otherwise be discarded.
Caloris spray dryers incorporate heat recovery systems whenever possible, improving overall energy efficiency. Contact us to learn more about how to make use of this technology.
Integrated Approaches to Sustainability in Dairy Processing
Using the technologies discussed above in combination results in further sustainability gains.
Pre-concentrating products with membrane filtration prior to evaporation reduces the energy required for the evaporation step. Maximizing efficiency of the evaporator ahead of your spray dryer further reduces the energy needed in the drying process.
Membrane filtration and evaporation can also be used for resource recovery. CIP chemicals and other inputs can be captured for reuse. Caloris has many examples of assisting customers with resource recovery in their operations.
If you are seeking to make sustainability improvements in your dairy processing line, call 410-822-6900 or send email to problem.solved@caloris.com to be connected with an engineer.
