Have you heard these extrusion buzzwords floating around? It’s time to find out what they mean! This list is certainly not exhaustive, so gather up the rest of your questions and read the Ultimate Guide to Food Extrusion. You can find it over on our downloads page. There you can download resources about extrusion and PacMoore’s other contract manufacturing services too such as dry blending, spray drying, consumer packaging, and many more.
Single Screw Extrusion: An extruder with a single screw that must rely on coarser granulations to convey materials in the barrel.
Twin Screw Extrusion: An extruder with two screws that can work with an endless range of raw materials, including and far beyond those of a single screw extruder.
Co-Extrusion: This method combines 2 separate product streams. For example, you could create a product with a crunchy exterior and a soft creamy interior.
Inclusion Products: Many extruded products are made to be included in a final application such as a granola bar, breakfast cereal, pet treat, etc. This is why they are called inclusions.
Product Density: This is the most common quality challenge in extrusion. Without highly accurate feed systems, product density can vary widely. Whether you are aiming for a light crisp or a dense pellet, consistency is key.
Interchangeable Dies: A die on a food extruder is a disc with openings that determine the shape of the final product. Since dies are interchangeable, the shape possibilities are practically limitless.
Bulk Packaging Options: whether producing crumbs, pellets or crisps, inclusion products must be packaged into something before included in the final application. Fragile products are safer in a Gaylord pallet tote or smaller corrugated boxes (each with a poly food grade liner). Denser products can be loaded into plastic-lined bulk bags. Extruded products that are finished products can be packaged directly into consumer packaging.