HORIZON 2020 SME Instrument

Horizon-2020

UltraCLEAN thermoforming equipment for ultraclean PACKaging of foods, and in-situ production of aseptic trays

UltraCLEAN thermoforming equipment for food PACKaging, a cost-effective alternative to clean rooms

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement nº 777900

Project:

UltraCLEAN thermoforming equipment for ultraclean PACKaging of foods, and in-situ production of aseptic trays.

Topic: Resource-efficient eco-innovative food production and processing.
Total budget: 71.429 €
EU Contribution: 50.000 €
Call ID: H2020-SMEINST-1-2015
Start date: 01/07/2015
End date: 31/10/2015

With this CLEANPACK project we, TECSELOR, will put in the market a thermoforming machine that manufactures ultraclean packaging trays, oriented to fresh food products. The machine can be used for aseptic tray manufacturing or for the whole process of food packaging, coupling the adequate module (vacuum, modified atmosphere, etc). Our aim is to reduce the presence of pathogens and spoilage organisms in fresh packed foods, having the biggest impact in foods that are consumed without a cooking step, offering a cost-effective, eco-innovative and energy saving alternative to clean rooms, which are very useful in food industry but expensive to build and maintain. TECSELOR is a Spanish SME founded in 2003 settled in Murcia, dedicated to the design and production of several kinds of food packaging machinery –thermoformers, thermosealers, shrink wrappers vacuum packaging-. Our SME is composed by highly educated personnel, with a vast experience of 12 years in average. We are 37 employees, and our revenue in 2013 (last registered financial data) was €4,250,811.59. The general objective of this project is to bring to the market a thermoforming food packaging machine for in-situ production of aseptic trays oriented to diminishing food borne diseases and food waste, and increasing shelf life in fresh foods products. CLEANPACK will render in the first five commercialisation years an accumulated revenue of €26,800,000 and an accumulated profit of €8,275,000 by selling 67 machines.

Nowadays only big food processors can count with aseptic packaging conditions. CleanPack the packaging machine provides the food safety standards of a clean room at a small scale. In response to our customers needs, TECSELOR has developed the CleanPack prototype that allows the ultraclean/aseptic packaging of food products which will represent a cost-effective alternative for a clean room providing the same level of food safety. CleanPack goes beyond clean rooms in terms of shelf-life extension of foods. This goal could be achieved, as the encouraging results of the CleanPack new packaging technique, which combines 3 patented technologies: sterile thermoforming and packaging, filling with surface decontamination of perishable fresh foods, and ultraclean laser cutting of trays. The integration of these techniques in a whole CleanPack machine will allow SME packaging to maintain the same level of food safety than clean rooms and extend shelf-life and freshness of their packed foods even more than big producers. The food industry sector of preparation and packaging of solid refrigerated foods such as dairy products, meat, fish, ready meals and salads or cut fruits and vegetables is demanding increasing levels of hygiene, which enable the product to be packaged with minimal microbial contamination or commercial sterility conditions (aseptically). CleanPack retains the fresh-like characteristics of foods as clean label, since no need for addition of further chemical preservatives, being able to extend the products shelf-live a minimum of 150%. The implementation of this milder technology also has the potential to reduce energy consumption, besides reducing the dependence from cold-chain logistics which enables decentralized production, adding sustainability and reducing costs in the distribution chain. Therefore, a huge array of SME food industries would achieve better products with extended shelf-life thanks to CleanPack improving the competitiveness of the sector.

Project:

UltraCLEAN thermoforming equipment for food PACKaging, a cost-effective alternative to clean rooms

Topic: Stimulating the innovation potential of SMEs for sustainable and competitive agriculture, forestry, agri-food and bio-based sectors.
Total budget: 1.372.291 €
EU Contribution: 960.603 €
Call ID: H2020-SMEINST-2-2016-2017