As a part of its complete cold-chain solution to Ultra-Low Temperature Storage, Klinge recently announced its new line of Quick Thaw Units which is produced in conjunction with Morep Food Process Systems Limited. Klinge’s CBU-30 system is used to blast freeze seafood and meat products, which can then be stored in the company’s SDF-60 or NMF-371 containerized systems at temperatures down to -60C. But as Klinge Sales Manager Jason Flynn notes, “the thawing of the product is just as important as the freezing and storage components. This is where the Klinge/Morep Quick Thaw Unit really provides a great value for our customers.” The problem of Drip Loss Approximately 70% of lean, fresh meat is water. One of the primary challenges for meat and seafood processors in the past decades has been determining how to best prevent that liquid from being lost during freezing, storage, and thawing of the meat. Mr. Flynn notes that “we strive to reduce the impact of this process in the freezing and storage portion of the transport. We have worked closely with Morep to ensure this trend continues during the thawing process, where unbalanced or poorly regulated thawing can lead to large amounts of drip loss of frozen meat and seafood.
Controlled Thawing and Consistent Temperature: “The key to the success of the Quick Thaw Unit,” states Klinge President Henrik Klinge, “is the intelligent Klinge/Morep controller which closely monitors and regulates internal container temperatures (within 1°C) and the thawing process as a whole, thereby reducing driploss.” Using a series of probes in and around the product, the controller will determine optimal air temperature and speed to facilitate thawing and closely monitors desired core and surface temperature to ensure minimum damage occurs to the product. Mr. Klinge goes on to note that “ this system has been shown by Morep to reduce driploss by up to 50% and the temperature data can be easily download and transmitted for food safety and quality assurance purposes.” Thawing the Quick and Easy Way The patented defrost systems allows for accurate and effective defrost with minimal manual operation. There are 10 preprogrammed and reprogrammable sets of temperature protocols for a variety of products so that the programs can be easily selected by operators once loaded and allowed to run for up to 24 hours unmanned. The unit can be installed in insulated rooms or, if plant space is at a premium, the unit can be mounted on moveable insulated containers provided by Klinge/Morep, thereby also increasing workspace while ensuring the thawing process occurs smoothly. A high unit capacity allows the Quick Thaw Unit to defrost 10-12 pallets in a period of 12-36 hours depending on product, product, temperature, and packaging configurations.