Céréco has been producing bio breakfast cereals at its Domagné site (Ille-et-Vilaine, France) since 1991. Backed by the Triballat Noyal group since 2017, the company is seeing double-digit growth and is continuing to develop within various sub-segments.
The most recent of these, co-extruded children’s cereals, has regularly grown in volume.
So much so that the annual volume of fillings used (principally chocolate) has increased eightfold between 2010 and 2018.
“The fillings were delivered in 10 to 25 kg buckets then manually emptied into a buffer hopper next to the extruder. The operators could no longer keep up with the higher production rates. What is more, we also wished to limit our use of plastics. It is for that reason that we switched to 250 kg metal drums,” explains Eric Bruncher, Industrial Production Manager.
For emptying the new drums, Céréco called upon its partner Immequip, a process conveying and extrusion peripheral equipment specialist.
Graco: A full range of sanitary pumps and unloading equipment
Immequip is a Graco distributor, and under the brand name SaniForce®2.0, Graco offers a complete portfolio of sanitary pumps and unloading equipment for the food, beverage and personal care industries.
The range is designed to handle the most difficult materials quickly and safely. It includes air- and electric operated double diaphragm pumps, electric-operated drum pumps, and piston transfer pumps. Beside these stand-alone pumps, it also includes drum and bin unloaders.
The SaniForce®2.0 line is ideal for a multitude of applications in various industries such as:
• Food: Low to high viscosity ingredients including juices and flavored drinks, salad dressings & condiments, sauces, edible oils, snack food flavorings, frostings, beer & wine, caramels & chocolate syrups, jams & fruit fillings, tomato paste, peanut butter, and more.
• Personal care: Lotions & creams, cosmetics, and high care food.
• Dairy: Yogurt, cottage cheese, ice cream ingredients.
• Meat and poultry.
• Pharma: Medical creams & lotions, organic reagents, blood products, bio pharmaceuticals, alcohol and solvent transfer.
Air-operated for easy serviceability
Immequip decided that the most appropriate product for the Céréco application was a Graco SaniForce Drum Unloader which includes a SaniForce 5:1 piston pump with a follower plate and an inflatable wiper seal on a stainless steel 4-wheel cart. Mounted on the cart, the drum feeds a buffer hopper. The pump guarantees a 99% evacuation rate.
At the end of the emptying process, the plastic bag lining the inside of the drum is pressed to ensure maximum filling product recovery. Three flexible hoses carry the product from the hopper to the extrusion head.
“After three months of operation, this system is proving to be reliable and simple to operate. It presents the advantage of being air- operated, which avoids many washing restrictions due to the absence of electricity,” observes Eric Bruncher.
A company committed to organic products and sustainability
Far from being trivial, the switch from plastic buckets to metal drums is yet another illustration of the environmental strategy implemented by Céréco since its creation.
For example, in June 2015 Céréco obtained the Bioentreprisedurable (organic sustainable company) label. This is a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative supported by SYNABIO, the national association of organic food companies, processors and distributors.
It has more than 210 members, mainly SMEs, and supports its members on regulatory, quality, sector structuring and CSR issues.
Céréco’s latest initiative is to recycle all its waste. “This has led to the setting-up of a specific processing stream for the metal drums,” adds Eric Bruncher. The approach is also reflected in the ecological design of the latest extension built on the production site at Domagné.
The building is constructed using ecological materials such as wood for the cladding or hemp for the thermal insulation. It supports 1,360 m2 of photovoltaic panels, and a rainwater harvesting system has also been installed.
“Céréco has a mission to promote the enjoyment of sustainable organic products. In 2017, the company forged closer links with the Triballat Noyal group which promotes similar values and a very similar vision for organic production and for the regions.
Ecological building design, the limitation of waste, renewable energy production and the development of high added social value sectors are shared areas of expertise and development,” concludes Eric Bruncher.
