USA – Grain and consumer foods supplier, Cargill and Krones, global equipment and packaging provider have joined forces to launch a new edible oil line in Sidney, Ohio, United States.
The new line said to be ‘the most efficient’ in North America expands Cargill’s capabilities in edible oil manufacturing while presenting an opportunity to grow its business.
According to a FoodBev report, Krones provided a high-efficiency turnkey system that included a PET blow molder, filler, labeller and packer to enhance production efficiencies.
The turnkey solution includes a Contiform Bloc and a Variopac Pro packer supported by a Robogrip robotic packer and palletiser.
The Contiform Bloc is comprised of a preform transporter, PET bottle blow molder, and filler in a single block and requires up to 30% less space than a conventionally installed blow molder and separate filler.
The versatile Variopac Pro offers the facility a wide range of packaging options, while the Robogrip enhances palletising operations.
Cargill said the new Krones turnkey line enables them not only to meet customer demands but to do so quickly, with accurate fills and consistent quality.
“We calculate that with this equipment we can work 30- 50% faster than our competition,” said Alex Miller, North American engineering manager for Cargill. “This capability opens up a lot of options for expansion.”
Apart from flexibility, it also offers all the major sizes and volume options as demanded by customers and consumers.
The new state-of-the-art line reduces scrap waste ensuring accuracy, efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and according to Rich Szima, lead operator for the Krones line, production is runs between 3% and 7% waste.
Launched in July 2017, the edible oil facility in Sydney is said to be the largest volume production facility of its kind in the company’s network.
Last year, the company opened an edible oil bottling line at the crush and refinery facility after investing US$10 million.
In addition to increasing capacity by 75% over previous lines, Cargill said the line allows it and its customers to deliver on their sustainability commitments by reducing packaging material waste and using fully recyclable terephthalate plastic.
