Ecolab has won an IFT Food Expo Innovation Award
Dr. Robert Ryther, Ecolab scientist
Ecolab last week received an Innovation Award at the annual IFT Food Expo, stating to be the industry’s first and only cleaning program designed to address zero trans fat oil build-up in food processing environments.
A panel of nine jurors from industry and academia, reviewed 53 qualified entries based on degree of innovation, technical advancement, benefit to food manufacturers and/or consumers, solving a problem relevant to food science and technology, and scientific merit. Ecolab was accepted with an outstanding innovation in products, ingredients, applications, equipment, instruments, technology and services.
“We are honored to be recognised by the IFT for this industry innovation,” said Timothy P. Mulhere, senior vice president and general manager, Ecolab Food & Beverage North America. “Ecolab developed Exelerate ZTF as part of our ongoing efforts to deliver the solutions food processors need to produce safer, high-quality products and measurably improve operational efficiency.” 
Frying or baking food with zero trans fat oils has the unexpected consequence of coating processing equipment and environmental surfaces with a stubborn residue. Ecolab’s Exelerate ZTF helps food manufacturers clean zero trans fat residue from processing equipment and surfaces in half the time of other cleaning methods. The gelled product application clings to equipment and surfaces to dissolve zero trans fat soils, making it easier to clean.
“As food processors made the switch to using zero trans fat oils, they discovered that removal of polymerised soils from processing equipment and environmental surfaces was difficult and time-consuming,” said Jeff Montanye, vice president, research and development, Ecolab Food and Beverage. “Exelerate ZTF has been proven to reduce the cleaning time by as much as 50 percent, helping processors reduce downtime and improve plant productivity and efficiency.”
