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Cetravac AG is among the most successful suppliers of vacuum conditioning plants for
chain stores in Europe. Company founder Adolf Cermak announces new developments for the
südback trade fair.

Master Bakers Grobe GmbH & Co. KG has used vacuum conditioning for nearly five years. Final
quality is defined by the production unit, and the sales department avoids the hectic morning rush.

published by f2m foodmultimedia GmbH,
Hamburg, ISBN 978-3-9817514-4-4

The married couple Katrine and Jon-Frede Engdahl
together with Jon’s sister Jorunn Engdahl founded
Kolonihagen in 2004. They wanted to work for “a better life”,
which includes organic foods just as much as species-appropriate
life for animals and a good, meaningful life for Farmers.

The use of vacuum conditioning in bakeries is currently the sector’s most important innovation. Adaptation of this technology to the needs of bakeries is largely thanks to Cetravac AG, the competence and market leader. The Cetravac AG company in Altstätten has for more than 20 years researched and developed tailor-made vacuum conditioning processes for individually customised use in artisan chain store businesses, industrial fresh baked goods production and frozen baked products manufacture.

Remainder of the interview in PDF format

The modernisation of the First German Baker’s School is also clearly noticeable in the technical equipment of their bakeries. Their machinery pool has been supplemented since 10^th April by an ultramodern vacuum conditioning plant made by the Cetravac company and which was provided to the school free of charge for training purposes.

Remainder of the interview in PDF format

Bakeries are developing a growing interest in the opportunities provided by vacuum conditioning after baking. This involves generating a vacuum in special plant, which can considerably reduce the previous baking time, thus saving energy. The volume of the baked goods can also be optimised, as well as ensuring that the products have better shape stability and crispness after baking. Weinheim German National Bakers Academy is collaborating with Cetravac AG in Switzerland to enable the innovative opportunities of vacuum conditioning to be displayed in the master bakers’ school and in seminar work as well. Together they have now commissioned a demonstration plant in Weinheim.

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Many factors exert an influence and there are very different aims in vacuum technology. The important task, therefore, is to use bakery engineering and control technology to combine these together to form a system that yields the required outcomes with the desired quality. The more precisely the relationships are understood, the more precisely the desired result will be achieved. Conversely, however, this is also exactly the crucial point at which the wheat is separated from the chaff. An accurate linguistic distinction is also important. Thus vacuum conditioning and vacuum baking are two completely different processes.

The distance from Altstätten in Switzerland to Lübeck on the German Baltic Sea coast is just short of 900 km. A long way, but also an obvious connection, since the bakery in the venerable Hanseatic city is considered to be the sector’s most innovation-friendly company. After its factory acceptance at Cetravac’s company headquarters, the first continuous plant to vacuum-condition par-baked bread rolls was brought into operation in Lübeck recently. The packing plant will follow in a few days, so from then on bread rolls in quantities enough for one or two trayfuls will be brought on their way in so-called pillow-packs to more than 180 branches from Germany’s first continuous vacuum conditioning plant.

It is well known that a prophet is without honour in his own country, and in this case we generously understand that to include the whole of the German-speaking region. The name of the prophet who wanted to give baked goods producers a taste for vacuum cooling was called Adolf Cermak. The same who is currently working through a long list of orders, and the list is not only long but also illustrious. Word of positive experiences spreads quickly in information exchange circles.

Remainder of the interview in PDF format