The work in the United Kindom on waste in the food system has lead to an intriguing, data rich report which is available on the WRAP website.

Taking the information of how much food is wasted from this report, with the post on excessively nutritious foods and Michele Obama’s work with the the food industry to reduce the energy content in the food they sell together surely indicates a process that should start to redistribute calories.

Maybe some more about this in future posts.

The direct stem injection method of heating has several advantages such as efficiency, easy control, no fouling on heat transfer surfaces and compactness. It does, however, mean that whatever carry over there maybe in your steam system will get into whatever you are heating.

Another of CTA’s series of pamphlets on processing.

These pamphlets are broad but short (normally 6 to 8 pages) and give a background about the topic, identifies the things to ask, describes processes, gives trouble shooting information and gives contacts from where further information can be sourced.
In this particular case it describes cooling in the double pot evaporative cooler and sun drying.

I have always thought that FAIRTRADE offered a marketing advantage to the small scale food manufacturer. After all the FAIRTRADE sales in the UK in 2009 were 800 million pounds!

Now in the last few days we see 2 very different stories on FAIRTRADE chocolate, in the Australian Foodweek.

Both of these raise questions and prompt me to write a few blogs trying to answer one that has been bothering me for some time. What fraction of, lets say Kit Kat’s raw materials, are FAIRTRADE? I will also be giving an overview of FAIRTRADE and how different organisations view it.

(click the image to open website)

Biofuels Digest» – Biofuels DIgest
01 January 2010 14:14
by Jim Lane

10 Biofuels Predictions for 2010: #9, Cellulosic ethanol “happens”

In 2010, look for:

In the US, ZeaChem’s semi works will , nearing completion at POET’s 25 Mgy project in Iowa, and the opening of Range Fuels’ 20 Mgy facility in Soperton, Georgia.  Internationally, look for LanzaTech’s 500,000 gallon project to open, he first cellulosic ethanol deal in China, and announcements that Brazilian, Vietnamese and Australian sugarcane bagasse will be utilized in advanced biofuels projects. Overall, 102 million gallons of advanced biofuels capacity by the end of the year, with 25 Mgy of it cellulosic ethanol at 17 facilities.

The hint from 2009:

The old saying is that “cellulosic ethanol is always and forever five years away.” If that’s true, then it’s time to party like its 2014, because commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol is just now upon us.

Companies that have been in the R&D phases for years — if not decades — are emerging with a set of technologies, and partners with strong balance sheets, that have every chance of making the 2010s the “Decade of Cellulose”.

In many ways, with solar and energy storage technologies still in the R&D or small commercial phase — biomass represents that “shovel-ready”, “fire when ready” technology for short-term reductions in fossil fuel intensity.

10 Biofuels Predictions for 2010: #9, Cellulosic ethanol “happens” is a post from: Biofuels Digest

News & Financial Analysis biofuels cellulosic ethanol

Posted via email from DIGIVU Environmental

I copy this post from Ecowordly, because I think all food processing industries should be investigating the potential of anaerobic digestion to convert waste into biogas to supplement their energy supply. It makes sense in lots of ways!

SAB Miller, South African grown, second largest brewer in the world has introduced anaerobic digestion to treat the waste leaving its Alrode Brewery in Gauteng, South Africa. Anaerobic fermentation of organic material produces methane, which is used to reduce the consumption of fossil fuel based energy.

TrappistBrewhouse.pdf

Copper brewhouse in a Trappist brewery

Brewery Waste & Biogas

In the brewery the waste is a collection of unavoidable losses of carbohydrate and protein rich materials, which would otherwise be sold as beer or byproduct and the large quantities of water used to maintain a hygienic operation. (more…)

Here is your opportunity to tell me what you would like me to be publishing here! Please email me here – dave@digivu.co.za or simply make a comment at the end of the post. Everyone who makes an input can supply me with information, which will be posted on www.digivu.co.za – what about using this as an advert?

You will have noticed I’ve been posting a bit more of non food processing bits and a bit slower in the last while – but remember you can access the information in many ways.

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