APEC Blog

The ingredient feeder is responsible for metering the right amount of ingredients from the source into the next process. This part of the ingredient system is often overlooked, which can cause problems later on.   Different materials, particularly fibrous, aeratable, abrasive and cohesive materials, can all…

Safety and sanitation regulations in food processing are very strict, perhaps because the stakes are very high. Ineffective safety and sanitation procedures can put consumers at risk as well as workers. Maintaining high safety and sanitation standards is an ongoing and sometimes arduous process, but…

Preventing illness and contamination across the food supply chain is a challenging process, with many regulatory bodies involved. It can be difficult to know where the responsibilities of one group ends and another begins. The USDA and the FDA work closely together in different areas…

Food processing plays an essential role in creating the majority of foods for both animals and humans. Ensuring that this process is safe and well-controlled can help to prevent costly and potentially dangerous recalls. Mitigating and preventing recalls in food processing means utilizing good manufacturing…

Lot traceability is essential for consumer safety. While it’s impossible to prevent food safety hazards 100% of the time, lot traceability allows manufacturers and distributors to stop the spread of contamination when it occurs, and prevent more customers from accessing the contaminated goods. Common lot…

A variety of bacteria and viruses, including Norovirus, Salmonella, Clostridium perfringens, E. coli, and Campylobacter, among others, can infect food, causing thousands of illnesses and deaths every year. These pathogens can hide in many different materials, usually originating from infected water or soil. The sheer…

The Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) created stricter food safety rules for farmers, growers, and food processors of all kinds. Compliance means preventing or dramatically reducing the chance of contamination, while non-compliance can result in FDA fines, consumer illnesses, and legal battles. Process design,…

Automated systems have made food, pharmaceutical and chemical processing systems faster and more efficient. An important part of this process is the accurate weighing of ingredients. As ingredients have become more concentrated, the importance for highly accurate scales has increased. The challenge for many engineers…

Whether for flavor, vitamin content, shelf life, or texture, liquid coating is the preferred application method for many cereals, snacks, pet food mixes, and more. Though this provides a number of efficient, time-saving advantages for snack coating, it can introduce some challenges if the process…

Proper planning before an ingredient system redesign or new installation is pivotal to ensure the system runs efficiently.  With so many moving parts and considerations, it’s not easy to plan for every eventuality, and a few problems are consistently missed. In this blog post, we’ll…