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January 13, 2017

13/01/2017: Rotary batch mixer - achieving precise ratios for feed supplements

“As food safety regulations become more complex and the marketplace more competitive, the Rotary Batch Mixer is the right tool for the job”
-Jos Zamzow, CEO of Catalyst, Des Moines, Iowa, USA

Family-owned Catalyst, formerly Pharm-Tech, custom formulates and manufactures feed and nutritional supplements for customers in the livestock, poultry, pet, wildlife and aquaculture industries. It operates five production plants, three in Idaho and two in Iowa.
 

Its range of over 100 products includes digestive aids, mineral supplements and most recently Certified Organic blends and finished feeds. One of Catalyst’s lead products is OCM™ Global, an all-natural blend of minerals that has established a worldwide reputation for improving the digestion and absorption of nutrients for livestock, while encouraging the elimination of waste.
  
Catalyst’s manufacturing process places high demands on mixers. Batches need to be thoroughly mixed to a homogenous blend, despite large numbers of ingredients, wide variation in ingredient weights, and range of bulk densities.

Jos Zamzow, Catalyst’s Chief Operations Officer stated, “FSMA (US Food Safety Modernization Act) regulations are changing the way we do business. The new requirements with regard to ingredient tracking, certifications, and product registrations make our large Munson Rotary Batch Mixer the most economical way to make products. It enables us to build larger batches at a time, cutting down on batch-by-batch paperwork and sample testing requirements.”

The 2125 l capacity 700-TH-75 Rotary Batch Mixer was installed in Catalyst’s Des Moines facility as part of a plant upgrade, replacing the original Rotary Batch Mixer, which had operated stolidly since the 1960s.

Mixing disparate ingredients in wide-ranging ratios
The number of ingredients in a single Catalyst product can vary from as few as four to more than 30, plus individual additions of trace elements and vitamins in amounts as small as 45g. The mixer needs to distribute both primary and trace ingredients with total uniformity.

Catalyst’s products are often added to larger finished feeds by customers, in ratios ranging from 1:40 to approximately 1:700, mandating that these additives are blended precisely throughout the batch. Mr Zamzow continued, “Our customers rely on us to retain exacting concentrations in the blends we make for them.”


Read the full article HERE.
 

The Global Miller
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