Ensuring bottled beverage safety!

In an increasingly regulated and safety-conscious market, legislation such as the EU Directive for Bottled Water 98/88/EC (1998) drives the beverage industry to meet ever more stringent standards of quality. Microbial growth due to contaminated water or ingredients can cause discolouration, off flavours and shortened shelf-life. The threat of contamination is further increased as manufacturers respond to demands for less chemical additives and preservatives. Effective microbial disinfection of the whole process is therefore essential.

To meet this requirement, Cott Beverages has been using Hanovia UV disinfection technology to treat process water used in the production process. The company decided to use UV technology to ensure final product security prior to mixing and bottling and has been very satisfied with the performance of the UV systems.

“The Hanovia UV systems have been easy to integrate, maintain and operate,” said Chris Prentice, site service engineer at Cott Beverages. “They provide us with absolute insurance before bottling by making sure that we are producing and maintaining a high-quality product, which is essential for our brand.”

Hanovia’s PureLine UV is an intelligent system that is optimised for the beverage industry to simplify the treatment of water, sugar syrup, brine and even reducing chlorine and ozone. Critically, there are no microorganisms known to be resistant to UV – this includes pathogenic bacteria such as listeria, legionella and cryptosporidium (and its spores, which are resistant to chlorination). Unlike chemical treatment, UV does not introduce toxins or residues into process water and does not alter the chemical composition, taste, odour or pH of the fluid being disinfected.

UV is used for both primary disinfection or as a back-up for other purification methods such as carbon filtration, reverse osmosis or pasteurisation. Because UV has no residual effect, the best position for a treatment system is immediately prior to the point of use. This ensures incoming microbiological contaminants are destroyed and there is a minimal chance of post-treatment contamination.

UV disinfection systems are easy to install, with minimum disruption to the plant. They need very little maintenance, the only requirement being the replacement of the UV lamps every 9-12 months, depending on use. This is a simple operation that takes only a few minutes and can be carried out by trained general maintenance staff. Hanovia’s UVCare™ training programme supports businesses like Cott Beverages to make sure servicing is carried out by certified engineers.

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