Snack Food Extruders

Extrusion technology provides the means to produce new and innovative snacks. Extrusion processing equipment has become a core operating equipment for most snack companies around the world. Food extrusion is the process of forcing food ingredients through a die under one or more conditions of mixing, heating and shearing, which is designed to shape and/or expand and dry the ingredients.
A food extruder can be considered a high temperature, short time (HTST) equipment that can transform a variety of ingredients into intermediate and finished products. During the extrusion process, the cooking temperature can be as high as 180-190°C, but the residence time is usually 20-40 seconds (depending on the type of extruder and the speed of the spindle). Therefore, the extrusion process can be called a HTST process. It is important to understand the extrusion terminology, as all manufacturers like to use their own terminology based on their equipment.

Extrusion technology offers several advantages over traditional methods of food and feed processing. Extrusion is simply the operation of forcing a plastic or dough-like material through a restrictor or die to form it. A food extruder is a piece of equipment that accelerates the process of shaping and reorganizing food ingredients. Extrusion is a very versatile operation that can be applied to a wide range of food processing. Extruders can be used to cook, shape, mix, texturize and form food products under conditions that are conducive to maintaining quality, increasing productivity and reducing costs.