Huntapac is a grower and supplier of root crops such as carrots and parsnips in the United Kingdom. In an effort to develop new value-led product options, the company installed a line to produce carrot powder, with a heat exchanger forming a vital part of the process.

The process begins when the carrots are diced and then pureed, after which they are fed into the heat exchanger. This consists of two R Series rotary scraped surface heat exchangers — designed and supplied by HRS Heat Exchangers — placed in series, which raise the carrot puree’s temperature from 50 to 140°F (10 to 60°C). As well as the heat exchangers themselves, HRS supplied two feed hoppers and an HRS BP Series positive displacement pump to feed the puree into the heat exchanger.

The heat for the process is supplied from a dedicated steam boiler, and the line has a capacity of 1,102 lb (500 kg) of puree per hour. The warmed puree is then passed over a drying drum, where it is dried to create a flaked product that is milled down into the finished powder.

Production of carrot powder began in the first half of 2021, and the line now produces around 132 lb (60 kg) of dried finished product an hour.