GEA Food Solutions Recommends Injecting Seafood with Brine Using Precise Technology for Food Manufacturing
Seafood production can be a challenging business for producers as maintaining consistency of distribution, quality, and yields can be difficult. However, GEA Food Solutions, a technology specialist, has now come up with an effective solution for injecting seafood with brine to enhance its quality and shelf life. By using a tight needle pattern with 2mm needles in diameter, GEA Food Solutions is providing a highly effective and precise method of injecting brine into seafood products.
Process Control is Improved with Small Needles in a Dense Pattern
The effectiveness of injectors is attributable to the density of the needle pattern. The use of small needles in a dense pattern enables better process control, thus locking in flavors, enhancing shelf life, and preserving the delicate structure of the fish.
Seamless Integration of Upstream and Downstream Operations Strengthens Product Quality
Seamless integration of upstream and downstream operations such as brine preparation, brine chilling, and shaking systems also ensures stable product quality from the fish processor to the end-consumer. This further enhances customer satisfaction and retention.
Brining Enhances Quality, Shelf Life, and Food Safety
There are many reasons for injecting fish with brine – improving flavor, increasing shelf-life and yield, and reducing food safety issues for cold smoked fish. Brines include salts and additives, which help prevent bacteria like listeria taking hold – and also ensuring that a more consistent product reaches the consumer in perfect condition.
Optimal Brine Temperature for Injection
To produce the best results, it is important that the brine used during injection is carefully managed. According to GEA, the “optimal brine temperature” for injection is between 2°C and 4°C. Temperature control equipment cools the brine to a stable temperature range. This helps to reduce the variation in injection pick-up and post-injection purge, further aiding retention and with this, contributing to yield.
Shaking Technology Maximizes the Value of Seafood Products
Shaking the fish helps to close the needle marks and shake off excess brine while activating proteins within the fish improves its water holding capacity. Examples from the field show that yield for trout is improved by between 1% and 2% after shaking compared with control products that were not shaken. This provides economic benefits for processors, improved mouthfeel, and taste for consumers and better results following further processing such as cooking, as moisture is better retained.
Impressive Results for Injecting Cod and Salmon
Trials of injection technology conducted by a Danish fish processing company in collaboration with GEA showed excellent results for cod fillets as the fillets were almost indistinguishable from fresh cod fillets but taste, mouthfeel, and the general structure were all positively enhanced. Similar impressive results have been reported for salmon.
Complete Line Solutions Available for Further Processing
GEA offers complete line solutions for further processing, including the production of formed products such as fish fingers using a plate-forming machine, which is ideal for fish as it is highly tolerant of any deviations during the process and allows excellent structure retention, even with delicate products. For cooked products, a three-zone spiral cooking concept can gently but thoroughly cook the fish from top to bottom and left to right. Smoking can also be incorporated during this stage, for hot-smoked salmon, for example. GEA packaging solutions can be applied to seafood lines, using rigid and/or flexible films.
In conclusion, injecting seafood products with brine using precise technology has become an effective solution for seafood producers to maintain the consistency of distribution, quality, and yields of their products. GEA Food Solutions has provided an excellent solution to the challenges that fish producers face and has improved the shelf life, quality, and taste of seafood for consumers while ensuring that seafood products reach the end-consumer in perfect condition.
