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Kraft

Blo-Thru Vibratory Sifter Removes Lumps From Powdered Cheese

If Coke and the old VW bug were the virtually ubiquitous products recognizable to many adults, then Kraft Macaroni & Cheese might be the new cultural icon for the MTV, Big Bird and Barney crowd. Youth are especially fond of the cheddar flavor and parents appreciate the quick and convenient preparation. Part of the convenience flows from not having to grate cheese but rather simply open a packet of powdered cheese and stir it into the macaroni.

Achieving a product with lump-free cheese ingredient is accomplished with screeners. Previously, the company used large complicated separators that relied on a high maintenance drive design. Their use resulted in excessive downtime that could not be tolerated. To eliminate this, production engineers in the Champaign, Illinois, processing center installed two stainless steel Kason Blo-Thru Vibro-Sifters.

"The Blo-Thru unit's mechanically simpler drive design results in a screener that handles our product better and with less maintenance," said Kraft Project Engineer Larry Mohr. The 30 in. (760 mm) Blo-Thru unit's capacity is about 3,000 lbs per hour (1360 kg per hour). One of the two Blo-Thru Vibro-Sifter operates day and night, according to Mohr.

The powdered cheese arrives at the Champaign plant in totes shipped from other Kraft plants. After passing through a dumper and hopper, and sifting with an 8 mesh screen in the Blo-Thru unit to remove the lumps and any other extraneous material, the onsize powder flows down vacuum pipes to a packaging operation. Once packaged, the various types of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese are shipped to food markets from coast to coast, enabling millions of Americans to buy and enjoy a nutritious meal that doesn't take much time or effort to prepare.

Screen Tips - Volume 10, Number 2 Summer 1995
 

 
Blo-Thru Vibratory Sifter Removes Lumps from Powdered Cheese
 
The Blo-Thru Vibro-Sifter has been selected for preventing cheese lumps from reaching consumers because it handles grated cheese better and operates with less maintenance.