What Limits Speed in Food Processing?

The speed of any food production line is only as fast as the
slowest station in the line. This can vary by the type of food processing—e.g.,
bread, cookies, bread, dairy—so the ways Teflon™ coatings can help vary from
product to product. And because so many Teflon™ coatings are FDA-compliant, there
are always options to fit any particular set of performance needs.

Industrial Baking

The high-release and non-stick properties of Teflon™ are well
known in the consumer bakeware category, but these properties also apply very
well to industrial baking in a number of capacities. Speed is important to
maintain profitability, so bakers are always looking for an edge. Higher baking
temperatures can mean shorter baking times, but there is a limit to continuous
use temperatures in fluoropolymer coatings.

FDA-compliant Teflon™ coatings such as PFA and PTFE come in
varieties that can maintain peak performance through repeated cycles of 500° F (260° C). Both single-coat and multiple-coat options are available.
For multiple-coat systems, each “layer” (including primer layer) must be
FDA-compliant independently in order for the complete coating system to be
FDA-compliant.

Teflon™ coatings also help keep food products of all kinds moving
down the line at speed on conveyors, down channels, through feeders, and into
packaging. It is frequently used on industrial food processing equipment such
as mixers, feeders, cutting blades, molds, guide rails, and die rollers.

Before Baking

In other baking applications, a Teflon™ coating can replace oil as
a release agent when storing and moving products, such as bread dough, prior to
baking. Dough troughs are large bins that store bread dough temporarily in
commercial bakeries. The problem is that when the dough rises it becomes sticky
and it is difficult to remove from its trough.

One common solution is to spray the entire surface with vegetable
oil so that the dough will slide out easily when ready. But the high volume of
oil can be costly and messy, can affect taste, and can become a safety issue.
Applying Teflon™ coatings on dough troughs can reduce oil consumption and cleaning
times dramatically.

Other food applications:

• Cheese
  Production – Teflon™ coatings eliminate the problematic buildup of dried
  cheese crust.
• Fast Food
  Restaurants – Teflon™ coatings help reduce recoating frequency on cooking
  equipment.
• Potato
  Chip Manufacturing – Teflon™ coatings help reduce residue build-up by
  coating knives used to cut potatoes, resulting in less downtime and lower
  cleaning and maintenance costs.
• Pineapple
  Processing (and similar high-acidity products) – Teflon™ coatings reduce
  corrosion caused by acidic juices, reduce need for lubrication with
  food-grade oil, and result in improved replacement frequency levels due to
  longer life of the housings.

Here’s a complete printable list of FDA-Compliant
Teflon™ Coatings, and here’s a competitive
analysis of FDA-Compliant One Coats.