161 years after Louis Pasteur performed pasteurisation for the first time on 20 April 1862, Danish company Lyras A/S is expanding its raslysation technology in the Netherlands. With this technology, the company offers an alternative to energy-guzzling pasteurisation. UV light kills harmful bacteria.
Since Louis Pasteur's invention, pasteurisation has been the method of choice in the dairy and food industry to kill bacteria in perishable food products by briefly heating the food. This requires heating to 72 degrees Celsius for at least 15 seconds. This reduces the number of microbes in dairy products, for example, while preserving the flavour and structure.
New technology
Danish company Lyras A/S uses a new technology: raslysation that uses UV light. The UV light kills harmful bacteria in dairy products, for example. This requires only a tenth of the energy and a third of the water consumption compared to traditional pasteurisation. Raslysation is also applicable to juice, wine and beer, and revolutionises liquid food production. Opaque liquids are passed by UV light, which effectively eliminates all bacteria.
Less water consumption
With Lyras' technology, food producers, such as dairies, also save 60-80 per cent on water consumption compared to pasteurisation. The cumbersome cleaning of pipes and tanks is no longer an issue. Raslysation can be applied to dairy products such as whey, brine, juice and many other liquid foods. This is done, for example, at Arla Foods Kruså . Packaging manager Vagn Clausen explains: "Arla Foods Kruså achieves both ecological and economic benefits by replacing the microfiltration system with a UV system from Lyras. Waste and energy consumption are reduced, while cleaning and operation become easier and cheaper."
Rapid growth
Danish company Lyras A/S has been growing at lightning speed since selling its first energy-saving pasteurisation equipment to Denmark, Sweden, the United States, Australia and Spain, and now in the Netherlands.
Awards
The technology has already won several awards, including being in the top 25 of the Postcode Lottery's Green Challenge. Lyras' ambitions are not limited to just positive returns. "Our ambition is to make a substantial difference and create a significant CO2 reduction," says Rasmus Mortensen. "We will not succeed until the food industry's CSR reports show that energy, water and chemical consumption has been dramatically reduced thanks to our technology. And the more we grow, the greener the transition we create."
Photo: Lyras
