branches > dairy > egg > dried |
Dried egg products
Article index
Storing and tempering | ||
Breaking | ||
Separation | ||
Mixing/stirring | ||
Pasteurising | ||
Drying | ||
Cooling | ||
Sieving | ||
Packing |
Storing and tempering
After the arrival of the eggs they are stored for 1-2 days at a cool temperature of 10°C. This storage is also called tempering. This low temperature makes it is easier to break the egg. Breaking
The eggs of class B and C are used for dried egg products. The size of the eggs is not important. The eggs do not need to be coded because the shell is removed. The eggs are broken in an automatic system. This system makes sure that the shell of the eggs are evenly broken. In this process the egg yolk remains whole. The content of the eggs is caught in separate bins. Should the egg yolk of an egg break, then only the content of this egg is not suitable to be separated.Separation
After the egg is broken the egg white and yolk can be separated from each other. The contents are not separated when a dried whole egg is to be obtained.The egg white and yolk can be separated by transporting the egg over a hollow tube. After a certain distance the tube is perforated. The egg white can leave the tube through the holes. The yolk is further transported and caught at the end of the tube.
Mixing/stirring
The whole egg, the egg white or the egg yolk is stirred in order to obtain a more even product. When an even mass is obtained it can be dried. The stirring of the egg white has to happen calmly because the characteristics of whipping have to be avoided.Pasteurising
The product is pasteurised in order to increase its storage life. It is important that in this process the characteristics of the product stay the same. Because protein coagulates under the influence of heat the pasteurising process happens at a low temperature. For 3.5 minutes it is pasteurised at a temperature of 60°C. The goal of this pasteurisation is the reduction of the germ count.Drying
Afterwards the product can be dried. Due to this drying the storage life is even more increased. In drying the aw is brought to such a value that the safety of the product is guaranteed. Drying is done by means of spray-drying. Small drops of the product are brought into a tower together with a hot air stream. The temperature of this air is about 150 to 250°C. Because of the hot air the drops release moisture. When the egg (part) arrives at the bottom of the tower it has become an powder with a moisture content of 5% at maximum.More information concerning spray-drying can be found in the left menu under ‘technology’, ‘heat transfer’ and then ‘drying’.