SWITZERLAND- Swiss equipment manufacturer Bühler has added new optical sorters to its portfolio, the latest being the SORTEX J SpectraVision, to increase nut yields, combat aflatoxin, and offer easier operation capabilities to nut processors globally.
Optical sorting is essential in any processing operation as it sorts grain, food, and plastic components, helping processors meet food safety requirements and achieve product quality needs.
Buhler’s sorting equipment uses a range of technologies, including cameras, lighting, and machine learning software, to remove product defects and foreign materials by color, shape, and texture.
This new portfolio continues to solidify Bühler’s status as the market leader in grains and nut processing machinery, especially today when the expectation for quality is higher.
Consumers and retailers have zero tolerance for the presence of mycotoxins and foreign materials in the food they buy.
Additionally, the aesthetic quality of the nuts is important, and consumers expect nuts that are uniform in size and shape, with no insect bites or other cosmetic damage.
According to Buhler, the optical sorting portfolio is designed to counter the challenges of the nut industry, setting the standards for quality while reducing waste and increasing yields to offer the advanced sustainability and quality that processors require.
The latest release in this portfolio is the SORTEX J, which according to Buhler, has been developed to ensure maximum productivity and reduced wastage of water, energy, and wastage.
It also boasts constant tracking and self-calibration routines to improve machine consistency by reducing the number of false ejections.
Moreover, it is easy to operate, and its connectivity to Buhler Insights makes it easy for real-time tracking of sorting performance and emergency warnings with the SORTEX Monitoring System.
The optical sorter uses MerlinAi sorting software with Artificial Intelligence for better product detection, high-intensity LED lighting that delivers three times the light of previous generation machines, and SpectraVision Cameras developed exclusively for optical sorting with better detection of different color shades.
Additionally, Buhler also provides that the Sortex H SpectraVision, a previous generation of the new sorter, is Bühler’s highest-performing optical sorter on the market, and it brings up to 50% higher reject concentration, meaning processors can provide a higher quality product to the market while also reducing waste.
Minimizing toxic contamination with Sortex portfolio
Another product in the SORTEX portfolio is the SORTEX LumoVision, Bühler’s answer to mycotoxin contamination.
It is marketed as a breakthrough in sorting technology that minimizes toxic contamination in nuts and improves yield by identifying and removing cancer-causing, aflatoxin-infected products.
According to results from industrial trials, the Sortex LumoVision can reduce the aflatoxin level by up to 90%.
Another offering, Sortex N, is a specialist pre-cleaner for natural and in-shell nuts with an efficient shell and critical defect removal of up to 20 tons per hour.
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