Batch and industrial plants
After a shortened baking time, the baked products are vacuum-conditioned in the Cetravac batch plant.
Rapid cooling
Vacuum conditioning is not just a question of cooling. On the contrary, it involves creating the required product properties through vacuum cooling and having the greatest possible positive effects on the products that are beneficial for the downstream processes. Thus it may be appropriate only to cool the baked goods down to a temperature of approx. 60°C if this allows the downstream processes to be carried out immediately (packing, slicing, apricot-glazing).
Shorter baking time
Reducing baking time to keep the moisture content of baked goods and thus their freshness as high as possible is also always at the forefront with vacuum conditioning. Cetravac vacuum conditioning allows 20 – 30% shorter baking times to be achieved, and using Cetravac vacuum conditioning can save you up to 60% of your energy costs over the whole process chain. The conditioned products simultaneously benefit from longer shelf life and freshness. At the same time, the shortened baking times allow increased capacity utilisation and enormously shorten the duration of the entire process.
Quality improvement / defining quality
The product’s properties (volume, crumb, crust) can be influenced beneficially at the same time. In particular, this procedure allows the crust properties to be adjusted and defined individually and product-specifically. For example: a high final pressure leads to a soft crust as required for products baked from yeast dough. On the other hand, a low final pressure leads to a harder crust, e.g. for baguettes.
With Cetravac’s vacuum conditioning, you achieve not only
20 – 30% shorter baking times
faster cooling
crisper products
greater product volume
shortened processing times
but at the same time also…
significantly longer shelf life and freshness
at least 60% less energy consumption
reduced need for investment
increased capacity and capacity utilisation
new opportunities and potentials
The distinction between vacuum cooling and vacuum conditioning
The process known as modulated cooling of baked goods in vacuum arose in Great Britain more than 40 years ago and was used mainly to cool large loaves and cakes. Because the process parameters were manageable only with difficulty, the process did not gain general acceptance. At a physical level, vacuum cooling utilises the relationship between pressure and the boiling point of water to cool products containing moisture. A vacuum is created in a closed box, the boiling point is lowered, and the free water in the product starts to boil. Evaporating this moisture withdraws heat from the product and it cools outwards from the inside in an extremely short time.
Whereas vacuum cooling focused mainly on rapid cooling down to a specified temperature, other factors play an important role in vacuum conditioning. In recent years, our company has decisively shaped the meaning of vacuum conditioning. Through Cetravac’s vacuum conditioning, products cool down significantly faster. A tray-load leaving the oven at around 90 – 98°C needs only about 2 – 5 minutes to cool down to approx. 30°C.
Vacuum baking
This term represents a baking process invented and patented by Cetravac, and the technology needed for it, namely a vacuum baking oven. Unfortunately, this term is often misused to describe the process shortening achieved by vacuum cooling, thus causing confusion. Cetravac’s vacuum oven is the only equipment that allows par-baked products to be baked-off extremely quickly through a unique combination of heat, steam and vacuum. Even large loaves achieve a core temperature of more than 80°C in only 6 – 8 minutes.
This is combined with long-lasting freshness after fully baking. The opportunity for a final vacuum cooling phase achieves optimum slicing firmness and/or readiness for packing immediately after removal. The finished baked goods gain higher moisture content and significantly longer freshness retention due to vacuum baking and the associated process optimisation. The products can also be perfectly sliced at once, thanks to rapid cooling down to the ideal temperature immediately after baking. Cetravac vacuum baking of pre-baked products means 0% weight loss, compared to 6 – 10% for conventional baking. Use of vacuum cooling as a final step when baking dough pieces also yields unprecedented quality.
What Cetravac’s vacuum baking means for you
0 % weight loss!
Moisture content equal to that obtained with a direct process
Faster cooling
Products can be sliced immediately
Considerably longer shelf life
Ready for packing immediately