Optimal water management in the food industry: process water disinfection for hygienic water recycling and reduced water consumption
In its scientific statement, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) underlined that the disinfection of the process water is not an optional step but a significant hygiene measure. The use of the washing additive CITROCIDE® PLUS ensures optimal hygiene in fruit, vegetable, and salad leaf processing. Peracetic acid disinfection cleans the wash water, reliably prevents cross-contamination between different product batches or within the processing line, and enables safe, hygienic water recycling, even in the case of high organic contamination due to product residue.
As a result, the water does not need to be replaced as often, and water consumption can be significantly reduced – in contrast to chlorinated processes in which organic deposits cause the disinfection performance to rapidly deteriorate. The results with the chlorine-free disinfection solution:
- Less water consumption per production unit
- Significantly lower fresh water requirement
- Reduced amount of wastewater
- Energy cost savings (e.g. for heating or treating water)
The disinfection solution provides a noticeable economic advantage, especially for fresh-cut companies that process high production volumes – for example several thousand kilograms of fruit, vegetables, and salad leaves per day. It leads to significant reductions in operating costs, even in the case of medium production volumes, because it allows users to optimize their use of water and chemicals. In principle, the peracetic acid cleaning solution adapted to suit every customer and their individual requirements and production volumes.
In the long term, processing companies benefit from:
- Stable production costs with reliable cost planning
- Reliable compliance with hygiene requirements when processing fruit, vegetables, and salad leaves
- A positive contribution to sustainability (e.g. For CSP or organic certifications)
