New die technology developed by Baker Perkins for the snack industry extends the co-extrusion process by producing tubes containing two fillings.
Co-extrusion involves extruding a hollow tube of cereal while simultaneously injecting low-moisture cream or paste fillings into the centre. These new products can be marketed as bar sized premium snacks with contrasting or complementary fillings, such as chocolate and orange cream or chilli and salsa.
Suitable fillings elevate single- or twin-filled co-extrusion products into the premium indulgent or healthy snack categories, where growth potential and margins are significantly higher than standard extruded snacks.
Innovation is the main driver of growth in the diverse and highly fragmented snack market, and for companies operating a standard system comprising a Baker Perkins SBX Master™ extruder, dryer and flavouring system, the addition of co-extrusion capability is an accepted path to business growth.
A crucial advantage of the extrusion process is that, when a company needs to expand, a Baker Perkins line may be extended through the Snack Master™ concept to broaden or even completely change the range of products being made.
Modules that can be added include a co-extrusion die and pillow crimper for filled pillows, sticks and wafers; specialist cutters for chipsticks or croutons; a sheeting die and oven for baked crisps; plus dryers, fryers, ovens and coolers to form versatile plants capable of a wide range of high-specification snacks.
