FDBusiness.com

A UK supplier has updated eco-friendly onion peeling processing equipment using technology it first developed in Manchester more than 40 years ago.

M&P Engineering said pollution restrictions, growing interest in good food ingredients and growth in emerging markets was driving increased demand for such machinery. It said it had expanded into a new factory unit to accommodate production of this and other food manufacturing machinery.

The mk3 onion peeler has been updated to take advantage of current manufacturing techniques and to comply with the latest electrical and safety requirements.

The dry peeling process it uses allowed companies to lower water usage and the waste it generated could be composted or burned to generate power, said the firm.

110 onions a minute

Up to 110 onions a minute measuring from 45mm to 115mm in diameter can be topped, tailed and peeled using the machine. M&P Engineering claims it can produce a finished product that is indistiguishable from a hand peeled onion.

A wide range of shapes and sizes can be handled without the need to change machine parts and the device does not damage the product. That means processed onions can be used directly for pickling or give maximum yield from further processes such as slicing or dicing.

“Unlike other manufacturers, our machine doesn’t grab or skewer the onion to peel it,”  said M&P Engineering managing director Pamela Nugent.  “Instead we use an air vortex chamber which was designed in the 1970s here in Manchester.”

More than 74m tonnes of onions were produced globally in 2012, according to the company.