An IQF freezer being used more extensively in the freezing industry or food processing industry is specific freezing equipment that stands for Individual Quick Freezing. This freezing technology is commonly used for Products that are typically smaller pieces of food products and can range from all types of berries, fruits, and vegetables either diced or sliced, seafood such as shrimps and small fish, meat, poultry, and even pasta, cheese and grains. You can assume a long-range of products to be frozen through this method or technology as this is quite an efficient method to use in your food processing channel. Products that have been subjected to Individual Quick Freezing are referred to as Individually Quick Frozen or IQF’d.
Individual Quick Freezing method is commonly used in preserving vegetables and operates in a manner that will not allow large ice crystals to form in vegetable cells. Because this way, vegetables could be destroyed or their taste could be compromised. This process accounts for each piece to be individually frozen, not allowing particles to cohere, and the final product will then not be frozen into a solid block. Whereas, keeping every unit frozen and sustained with its efficient taste and texture alive.
When it comes to the preservation of vegetables, various freezing techniques are used during processing or handling the vegetables during processing. These techniques and procedures include blast freezing method, plate freezing method, belt-tunnel freezing method, fluidized-bed freezing method, cryogenic freezing method, and de-hydro freezing method. These choices of method depend on the quality of end product desired and required, the kind of vegetable to be frozen because they may differ with temperature range and bearing power, financial limitations, and whether or not the products need to be stored as bulk or as individual retail packages for smaller level use or smaller target markets with lesser requirements or needs.
Advantages of the Individual Quick Freezing method
Taking about the advantages of the Individual Quick Freezing method, one of the main advantages of using IQF freezing technology is that the freezing process accounts for only a few minutes. The exact time needed for specific products and operating channels depends on the type of Individual Quick Freezer used or employed and the product being used during the process. The short freezing method prevents the formation of large ice crystals in the product’s cells, making it sustainable and quality worth during processing and avoid destroying the membrane structures at the molecular level. This way, the product could be kept with its shape, color, smell, and taste after defrost, and for a greater period.
Talking about the advantages of Individual Quick Freezing technology, another benefit is its ability to differentiate units of the products during freezing according to their temperature requirements, producing higher quality products compared to block freezing or other typical freezing methods. This benefit accounts for food sustainability for quite long and the product enhance ability, as the consumers can defrost any time they needed without the compromise of quality and taste and using the exact quantity they needed according to the requirements.
The concept behind the Individual Quick Freezing method is that it involves transportation of the product into the freezer with the help of a processing line belt. Inside the freezer, the product travels through the freezing zone and comes out from the other side. Product transportation inside the freezer is done using different technologies like conveyor belts or infeed shakers or vibrators. Some IQF freezers use transportation belts similar to a conveyor belt. While others may use bed plates that hold the product, and further asymmetrical movement takes place that advances those bed plates through the freezer.
