In-house ginger processing for beverage maker

Australian, family-owned business Bundaberg Brewed Drinks reduced its supply risk by investing in pack-house technology to process its own ginger. The ginger beer’s unique flavour is a result of a brewing process that uses real home-grown ingredients, such as dried ginger.

Previously, the manufacturer purchased raw ginger from local suppliers and outsourced its drying process. However, over a decade ago, the company decided to vertically integrate and take control of the supply of its key ingredient to reduce quality uncertainties. Richard Cowdroy-Ling, General Manager of Business Technologies, said: “It was very hard to keep making premium ginger beer without a reliable supply of quality ginger. We knew we needed access to Australian-grown high-quality ginger, handled and processed to our specifications.”

This strategic decision meant the company moved to growing its own ginger along with selecting Australian contract growers that met its strict quality criteria. It also meant investing in a facility to wash, peel and dry the ginger prior to further processing.

“The objective was to have a turn-key washing and peeling line supplied and installed by one company that is an expert in processing root vegetables similar to ginger,” Cowdroy-Ling said. “Because ginger is a difficult shape to wash and clean, we needed a company that was prepared and capable to work with us to develop and test the newly designed equipment. We chose Wyma, and it has been an excellent choice. We could not ask for better people to work with from initial consultation right through to the line installation and commissioning.”

The ginger line can handle 2 T/hour.

Australian ginger is grown in heavy soil, which brings a high amount of dirt and clods at harvest time. Consequently, Wyma recommended a solid pre-wash system with Wet Hopper and Flume Destoner to remove dirt, stones, clods and debris.

“The Flume Destoner is such an elegant engineering solution for separating sand, rocks and soil from the ginger,” Cowdroy-Ling said.

The next part of the line comprises a Vege-Peeler designed to meet Bundaberg’s specific requirements.

“We are happy with the output of this machine and the Wyma team worked hard to reach our specifications.”

A specialised food dehydration company completed the drying stage of the line.

The fact that a family-owned company in a small town of 80,000 people in the South Pacific exports its products to over 30 countries is testament to the hard work put into delivering a premium quality product.