Running from September 20 – 23, the Pet Food and Aquafeed Workshop took place at Bühler’s headquarters in Uzwil, Switzerland.
An extensive four-day training event, participants were given the opportunity to continue their education in extrusion production, whilst observing practical demonstrations with Bühler’s cutting edge technology.
Designed for individuals who are actively involved in the technological aspects and feasibility of extrusion production for aqua/petfood, such as operation supervisors, engineering or R&D personnel, the workshop provided attendees with an introduction to the basics of extrusion technology, focusing on preconditioning, energy, moisture and mass flow balance.
The sessions were run by experienced extrusion experts and included hands-on training for theoretical aspects. The training was delivered in the style of a hands-on workshop, discussing topics such as Single v/s twin screw extrusion technology, screw configuration, die and knife technology, SME control, product density control and its significance in vacuum coating.
Additional topics covered in the workshop includes micro-feed for aqua as well as fresh meat addition and filled pillow treats for pet food. There were also practical demonstrations to help attendees apply everything they learnt in the company’s modern pilot plant.
The demonstration featured Bühler’s Twin-screw extruder, a piece of equipment that is a multifunctional PolyTwin, EcoTwin and CompacTwin twin-screw extruder that offers flexible, reliable 24/7 processing for breakfast cereals, food ingredients, petfood and aquafeed products.
Demonstrating the benefits of extrusion
The sessions were administered in English, with understanding how to apply the opportunity of extrusion technology for various products the goal of this training event.
The course took place at Bühler’s Extrusion Application Centre, a multi-purpose lab where tests are conducted on food and animal feed, for example, checking new recipes, product shapes or textures.
The food trials that typically take place in this lab include those involving cereals, extruded breadcrumbs, reconstituted rice, flavouring, modified starch and flour, soybeans, sunflower seeds, peas and new proteins.
The tests use the company’s latest technology to run analyses on pet food, animal feed and aqua food for freshwater and marine species. Using cereals, pulses, bypass proteins, fish feeds, pet food treats, texturisation of proteins, and any other specific topics of interest from participants, the many benefits of this concept were demonstrated.
Once attendees completed the four-day course, they were awarded a certificate of participation.
