Baking & Snack - March 2016 - 82

PIZZA TECHNOLOGY

High-volume sheeting lines have the flexibility to adjust to many sizes and styles
of pizza crust.
Moline Machinery

What goes on top
What's a pizza without its toppings? What's a pizza line without
topping systems? Both are incomplete, and several manufacturers of pizza equipment now design their makeup lines with
topping and dispensing units.
Moline Machinery, for example, recently acquired Tiefenthaler
Machinery, allowing it to integrate the T-Topper with its sheeting
lines. "It can sprinkle dry toppings like herbs and spices onto
the dough," said David Moline, sales and marketing manager,
Moline Machinery, LLC. "These can also become inclusions in
the crust via lamination."
Ken Hagedorn, vice-president, sales, and partner, Naegele,
Inc., noted that more pizza lines now feature checkweighers
after topping operations. "Cheese is getting to be expensive
and is the most used in volume amounts," he said. "Weight
control is no longer as casual as it was." Such care is needed
to meet legal requirements covering product weight and nutrient levels described on package labels and in the Nutrition
Facts Panel. "If you're under - or over - you're in violation of
the labeling rules."
Some toppings can negatively affect overall product quality. Stephen Bloom, vice-president, Allied Bakery Equipment
Co., explained that sauce put on raw dough can interfere with
proper baking of the middle of the crust. "One thing to do is to
pre-bake the crust to lightly toast it," he recommended. "That
way the sauce doesn't penetrate the crust.
"Another aspect of topping, and a recent improvement, is
how the sauce is applied," Mr. Bloom continued. "Instead of a
waterfall system, you can use a targeted applicator. It looks like
a large showerhead and leaves a clear rim around the crust's
edge. It conserves ingredients."
Line cleanability comes into the purchasing decision, too,
Mr. Bloom noted. "It makes a difference at which stage you
do pizza makeup, particularly the application of toppings," he
said. "If done after the oven as is normally the case, it has to
be performed in a clean room that complies with USDA standards and regulations."

82 Baking & Snack March 2016 / www.bakingandsnack.com

"That is why with Rademaker we recommend
validating the product and process in our Rademaker
Technology Center," Mr. Riggle continued. The facility's
technologists work with the crust producer to validate
the crust and the required process.
A good number of equipment manufacturers have
similar innovation centers that they make available to
customers for testing and pilot plant runs.
There's another place to encounter new technologies:
the International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE)
set for Oct. 8-11 at Las Vegas. "Exciting improvements
involving the natural stretching of pizza doughs are right
now in the prototype and patent stages," Mr. Bloom said.
"These could be ready to discuss at IBIE 2016. Look for
them at the show."

United in cleanability
The Las Vegas event will also introduce new sanitation features for Rademaker equipment, Mr. Riggle explained. "At IBIE 2016, we will be showcasing our latest
designs in quick releases of conveyor belts coupled with
open conveyor designs; technologies to clean and dry
the equipment faster and more thoroughly; ways to take
apart and put back together our equipment quickly but
also correctly and consistently so that, as end users, our
clients spend more time making and selling the highest
quality product," he said.
With the Food Safety Modernization Act regulations
coming into effect, the ability to wet-clean equipment
now figures into user specs for nearly every new
processing line. Even for equipment manufacturers that
have built such lines for many years, the technology
continues to evolve, Mr. Riggle noted. "Our latest
designs incorporate full washdown capability along with
maintenance features to allow the line to be cleaned and
maintained quickly in order to get back into production
faster," he said.
Cleanability plays an important role in equipment
design today. Mr. Cummings attributed this emphasis
to "more stringent requirements from our customers

http://www.bakingandsnack.com

Baking & Snack - March 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Baking & Snack - March 2016