What it is

Agricultural drying facilities are used for processing fruits, vegetables, nuts, and spices to increase shelf life and transportability while intensifying flavor. A typical drying line will also include washing units and slicing, chopping, or de-pitting machinery, depending on the product. Chopping or slicing equipment is often necessary when drying larger fruits or vegetables (like apples, zucchini, carrots, or pears) but is not always necessary for cherry tomatoes, persimmons, and any small fruits or vegetables with high water content. De-pitting is done either before or after drying, depending on the fruit. Some important concerns when determining drying parameters include maintaining flavor profiles, setting parameters to avoid over-drying, and maintaining hygienic conditions.

How it Works

The two main types of industrial dryers used for agricultural applications today are static dryers and continuous dryers, compared below. 

Static dryer

• Relatively low initial investment
• Production in batches of ~800-5000 kg per day, 2-3 batches per day
• Slightly lower product uniformity
• Somewhat labour intensive
• Does not have modular capacity for processing line

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What it is

Industrial nut cracking machines effectively process whole nuts to remove the shells and separate shells from intact kernels.

How it Works

The nuts are cracked either by a series of rollers or concentric metal drums, either of which use friction to split and shear off the shells while allowing the whole kernels to freely drop into a hopper for collection. Nut cracking machinery is necessary for any industrial or scale-up nut production, with different specifications required depending on the type of nuts being processed. A nut production line generally involves washing machinery, nut shelling machinery, kernel shell separators, grading machinery (either mechanical or manual), and packaging facilities.

Types of nuts: hard or medium-hard shell nuts, such as palm, macadamia, walnut, pecan, almond, hazelnut, chestnut.

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What it is

Industrial chopping and slicing equipment is used to prepare fresh fruits and vegetables for drying, freezing, freeze-drying, or as a final step before packaging. Whether you’re wanting to sell dried fruit slices for healthy snacking or the tastiest veggie chips, chopped fresh salad or cubed frozen fruit for smoothies, you’ll need high-quality chopping or slicing equipment in your processing line that is compatible with your pre-existing equipment, can keep up with your throughput, and doesn’t break the bank.

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What it is

Sorting machinery separates components by quality, physical characteristics (like weight, size, firmness, or physical defects), or color as an indicator of ripeness and are typically included in any fresh fruit, vegetable, or nut processing line. A washing line is normally incorporated with sorting machinery and a pallet tipper to pour the fruit or vegetables into the water, before they are fed into the sorting machinery, generally while still wet. The three primary types of sorting are mechanical sorting, manual sorting, and optical sorting.

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What it is

Every item we purchase, whether online or in person, local or international, generic or custom-made, is packaged to protect goods, preserve quality, and make it easy to transport. Packaging is especially important in the food industry, where 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted  each year due to spoilage or damage during transport. By choosing the right type of packaging and equipment for your processing plant, you  not only reduce waste by protecting your product and increasing ease of transport, but also add value by keeping it fresh. Packaging is especially important  for international exchange, as it ensures that products arrive in the same condition they left the production facility–organized, hygienic, and intact–and that they meet the hygiene and safety requirements for entry into the global economy.

How it works

Packaging equipment ranges from sterile food packaging units for vacuum sealing, bagging, and stretch wrapping, to boxing and bundling for delivery to local markets or export. Depending on your product, production rate, and market, your processing line may require multiple different types of packaging and packing machines which integrate seamlessly with each other and into your current setup. For example, your fresh tomato line may require measuring and boxing your product in plastic seal-top containers, printing and adhering labels, and packaging in corrugated cardboard boxes for transport. All of these machines must be integrated properly to prevent product loss and damage while maximizing efficiency. 

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What it is

Market access is simply your ability to sell your product, either locally or internationally. Having access to the market involves overcoming barriers to trade, which includes meeting local or international regulations and standards and obtaining certifications which add value and validity to your product.

How we help

We have experience helping clients in the following three main areas of market access:

1. Identifying and complying with local and international standards, and meeting the criteria for certifications which increase market access. Depending on your market, obtaining organic, ISO (International Organization for Standardization), and/or GLOBAL G.A.P. certifications will increase your market access and the legitimacy of your business.
2. Transport of goods and meeting transport requirements.
3. Discovering wholesalers and potential purchasers for client’s products and making the connection in an efficient and effective manner that gives you the best chance of success.

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