Macapuno drying project 500kg/batch – Tra Vinh

The project to dry and enhance the specialty product “macapuno” in Tra Vinh province started in 2021 with 01 FD24 freeze dryer. This capacity project is up to 500kg per batch. In 2022, the project just completed the investment and installation of an FD120 freeze dryer. The first macapuno freeze dryer out of 4 according to the initial plan.

Why do we need to dry macapuno ?

Macapuno or coconut sport is a naturally occurring coconut cultivar that has an abnormal development of the endosperm. The result of this abnormal development is a soft translucent jelly-like flesh that fills almost the entire central cavity of coconut seeds, with little to no coconut water. A unique specialty only found in Tra Vinh, Vietnam, macapunoes are grown abundantly in Cay Xanh orchard, about 4 km from Cau Ke town Tra Vinh province (Wikipedia).

There are 2 reasons why freeze drying method is very suitable for macapuno:

• The flavor of macapuno is only preserved when freeze dried. Haitan has tried various other drying methods such as hot air drying, heat pump drying, or vacuum drying. However, the final product requires a good flavor and a brittle texture. Therefore, macapuno needs to be freeze dried.
• macapuno is a rare, expensive product. Therefore, the problem of freeze drying macapuno to be able to preserve it for a long time, serving a wider market is economically viable. The cost of freeze drying for this product is not too high compared to the demand and budget of customers.

To better understand freeze-drying technology, please refer to the following article: What is freeze-drying?

Thanks to the above reasons, the investor boldly decided to invest. The project also receives financial, communication, and technology support from the Trà Vinh Provincial People’s Committee and Haitan.

What are the specifications of the HT-FD24 and FD120 dryers?

No.	DETAIL	HT-FD24	HT-FD120
1	Electric source	380V/50Hz/3pha	380V/50Hz/3pha
2	Est. Energy consumption	3,5kw	12kw
3	Ice condenser capacity	24 liter/batch	120 liter/batch
4	Drying pressure	< 600 mTorr	<600 mTorr
5	Weight around	500kg	2000kg
6	Shelf temperature range	(-)30 ̊C to 70 ̊C	(-)30 ̊C to 70 ̊C
7	Shelf temperature acuracy	± 2 ̊C	± 2 ̊C

List HT-FD freeze dryers by Haitan

Installation process macapuno freeze dryer

In phase 1. HT-FD24 belongs to the mini-series and operates on three-phase electricity. At this stage, the investor must place the machine in an air-conditioned room with a minimum capacity of 2hp. The machine has flexible wheels for easy movement. All machine equipment is neatly placed on the machine frame, making installation quite easy and quick.

After nearly a year of operation, the investor redesigned the workshop to comply with food safety standards, with production flow going in one direction.

In phase 2. To install the FD120 machine, the investor has designed to install the cooling tower outside the workshop. However, the machine room does not require cooling with a large capacity air conditioner.

.As a result, the investor invested in a separate machine room with a harvesting and raw material supply room. The entire machine part of FD24 and FD120 is neatly placed in a machine room with good ventilation. The front doors of the two machines will be inside the harvesting and supply room, separated by an aluminum wall.

The entire machine installation process should not take more than 3 days for each machine.

In the following stages, the remaining FD120 machines will be sequentially installed in the pre-designed positions.

The testing process of the Macapuno freeze dryer

The testing and commissioning process is carried out immediately after the completion of installation. Typically, Haitan’s technicians will start the first batch operation with a test product being water. This drying batch is a batch of fine-tuning parameters and checking power and water sources.

The next batch is the finished product batch with 100% of the drying capacity designed. The finished dried coconut jam product is dried for 35 hours, resulting in a very good crispy texture. The product has a bright color, and the flavor retains the precious characteristic aroma of this local specialty. The product quality is very consistent, indicating a well-designed machine, ensuring the standard for large-scale production goods.

After drying, the product’s moisture content is checked using a specialized moisture drying scale. The product’s moisture content is below 2%, suitable for long-term preservation for up to 2 years without the need for preservatives.

After 2 trial drying batches, the investor accepted the completion acceptance test and put it into use.

The highlights of the macapuno freeze dryer

Taking another look at the overall project, Haitan would like to highlight the 3 most impressive points of this macapuno freeze dryer project.

1. It meets the food safety standards set in a rural area in the Mekong Delta.
2. The infrastructure connections are stable and can be expanded.
3. The quality of a local specialty is preserved intact.

So, Haitan has just introduced the project to preserve the specialty of Cau Ke sáp coconut in Tra Vinh. We look forward to continuing to receive the trust of our customers in the future. For more details, please contact us via the hotline number at the top of the page.