The rapid cooling system using cold showers or Hydrocooling is becoming increasingly widespread as a conservation method in the fruit and vegetable sector. Its growing popularity arises from the fact that it is one of the most effective ways to quickly eliminate heat from food, thus guaranteeing the quality of the products during the preservation, transport and marketing processes.
The most important advantage offered byHydrocoolingis thecooling speed becauseit offers stock chambers or picking areas the opportunity of a lower thermal load. The other great advantage is that this system isvery useful for large-scale production, as large quantities of product can be cooled in a single day. This is because the average time of a cold-water shower is 15 min, with a water temperature of up to 0.5 ºC.
This system is especially interesting for the refrigeration of cherries, stone fruit, asparagus, etc ... that is, for those fruits and vegetables whose optimum storage temperature is between 0.5ºC - 4ºC.
What does it involve? The system is based on a water chiller, which cools
the water to around 0ºC. This water is subsequently applied on top of the
product, reducing any fungi that may have remained in the product and achieving
a rapid drop in its temperature. The process of placing the food in the hydrocooler can
be done continuously or sporadically. In continuous systems, the products are
loaded on pallets placed at the entrance of the tunnel and moved through it on
a mechanical conveyor belt. When the pallet with the fruit leaves at the end of
the tunnel, it is already at the optimum storage temperature (between 0.5ºC and
4ºC). In batch systems the loading is done manually.
Hydrocooling benefits In addition to the benefits already mentioned, the
following must be added: • Energy savings: in the cooling process, 100% of the
energy consumed is used to cool the water, so there is no need to cool large installations
such as chambers etc ... This represents significant energy savings. • Fungicidal effect: the cooling process favors the
reduction of pests or possible fungi that may have remained after the previous
washing of the product. • Hydration: the product does not lose water during
the process, and in some cases, it may even be rehydrated. • Conservation: this way of cooling the products
lengthens their shelf-life post-harvest. It also maintains the texture, color
and flavor of the products. • Installation: when installing the system, it offers
many advantages, since it can be added to an existing installation. As we have seen, the use of hydrocooling brings multiple
benefits, but despite this, a series of precautions must be taken to ensure the
system is properly operated, since any error can put production at risk and
cause considerable economic losses.
