STiR coffee and tea magazine

14 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 6, 2019 (December / January 2020) Equipment NEWS Volpak pouch horizontal form fill and seal equipment Volpak High Precision Fill and Seal "A lot can happen in 400 milliseconds: in the case of horizon- tal form fill and seal (HFFS) pouching machines, the whole high-precision process of filling pouches has to happen within this very short time frame," according to Volpak, a Coesia company that manufactures horizontal form-fill-seal machines for flexible packaging. "The first rule is to ensure you are working within a stable environment," according to the company. The behavior of hygroscopic products that attract water, such as ground coffee, change according to the humidity level and have a tendency to become compact, thus altering the quantity of product that is dosed in each cycle. Volpak feed systems synchronize with the machine's auger filler thanks to special detectors that are able to measure the level of product being held inside. "At Volpak, we are always ready to share our knowledge in order to support our customers' prevention of mishaps during the filling process." Learn more: www.volpak.es Caffè Carraro: Innovation True to its Roots Caffè Carraro unveiled new branding at the HOST Milan expo in October. The message it conveys is that Caffè Carraro strives to innovate while staying true to its roots and coffee-roasting history, according to the 90-year-old company. Everything from the logo and product packaging to the company website and social media reflects this underlying message. "However, there will be no change to the values for which Caffè Carraro has been renowned since it was founded," the company said in a statement. "First and foremost, among which is the quest for quality." "The drive for quality goes hand in hand with the company's dedication to environmental and social issues all along the production chain, from growing the ingredients to the use of eco-friendly materials." The company, based in Schio, Vicenza, maintains six production lines to deliver diverse flavors in single-serve capsules. Two additional lines were introduced as the company targets new customers. Caffè Carraro reports 15% annual sales growth and plans to continue its international expansion into the Middle East, the Balkans, northeastern Europe, and Asia. Learn more: www.caffecarraro.it Second Cup Restructures as Aegis Brands Steven Pelton, president and c.e.o. of Second Cup announced a new business structure in which Second Cup Coffee Co. becomes a wholly-owned subsidiary of a portfolio of brands owned by Aegis Brands, Inc. In a release Pelton, Aegis c.e.o., explained that "We created Aegis with the vision of building a portfolio of amazing brands that can grow and flourish with access to our resources and expertise. We are committed to letting each company under the Aegis Brands umbrella operate independently, and to work with them to provide shared expertise – and shared services - to help them thrive," Pelton says. He anticipates acquisitions in coffee, foodservice, as well as branching into cannabis by opening two shops in Calgary next year. Caffè Carraro unveils rebranding at HOST Milan Starbucks Reserve in Chicago A crowd of 10,000 visited the world's largest Starbucks on opening day and the crowd has hardly thinned since. The massive 35,000 sq. ft. five level facility showcases roasting operations, with staff encouraged to explain the coffee journey from bean to cup. "The locally fabricated, custom Probat roaster allows us to unlock the enormous potential for flavor in every Starbucks Reserve coffee," according to the company. The roastery will produce 200,000 pounds of coffee annually in batches that take 12-15 minutes. The roastery is fed coffee through a 56-foot tall bronze colored metal cask that stores and distribute coffee beans throughout the roastery. "The skin itself is perforated and slit to reveal views of freshly roasted coffee moving through tubes in all directions. Customers ride a spiral escalator that wraps around the cask and gaze up at the ceiling emanating rays that reflect onto our centerpiece," according to Starbucks. Chicago is home to the first Starbucks located outside the Pacific Northwest, a point of pride with founder Howard Schultz. Learn more: www.starbucksreserve.com Custom Probat

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