Tetra Pak’s latest processing line for juices and still drinks reduces energy use and water consumption, providing a sustainable solution for manufacturers. This article was first published in Food & Drink Business July/August 2020.
A first-of-its-kind low-energy processing line for juice, nectar and still drinks (JNSD) has been released by Tetra Pak.
The process treats beverages in two separate streams using a combination of pasteurisation, filtration and UV technology, which are aseptically blended together into the final beverage.
The new JNSD line reduces energy consumption by up to 67 per cent and cuts water consumption used for cleaning-in-place, sterilisation and product change-over by up to 50 per cent.
Subcategory manager JNSD & Other Beverages Maria Norlin says: “We realised that we needed to rethink JNSD processing and find a more sustainable solution that at the same time still provides a high level of food safety and quality assurance for our customers.”
Instead of pasteurising the whole volume of the product, the new production line separates out water and pasteurises only the concentrate. Water is treated separately with filtration and UV light, which requires a lot less energy.
“Our decision to split the existing JNSD line into two separate processing streams for treatment allows us to offer customers processing options that can help them achieve their climate goals and enables the industry to contribute towards global sustainability efforts,” Norlin says.
“After many years of low growth, we see new opportunities for our customers on the horizon as people increasingly search for ways to lead a healthier lifestyle, a trend which has accelerated during the spread of COVID-19.
”We hope this new production line can help customers capture the growth opportunities in a more cost-efficient way.”
The International Fruit and Vegetable Juice Association awarded Tetra Pak its Award for Innovation for the line.
