SubscribeIt's well rounded, classy and full of energy - a genuine Latin beauty. We're speaking of the tomato, whose origins lie in the land of the Aztecs, who called the juicy fruit "Tomatl". Around 1520, Spanish seafarers brought the tomato from Mexico to Europe, where the strange curio quickly caught the interest of botanists and chefs alike. Today, the tomato is one of the most popular vegetables all over the world.
Aseptic packaging for guaranteed product quality.
Over 1,000 different varieties are cultivated today. The red pigment of a fully ripe tomato supplies valuable nutrients for our health. Potassium is the most important mineral. It controls the distribution of fluid in the body and also has a purifying effect. In addition, the mineral lowers the blood pressure.
Tomatoes are rich in vitamins A, C and E, which protect the cells, prevent deposits in the arteries and strengthen the immune system. Tomatoes also contain components of the vitamin B group, which are good for the skin, hair, eyes, muscles and digestion.
In season from July to October
In addition, tomatoes provide biological anti-aging substances. Above all the antioxidant lycopen builds up from the green colour when the tomato ripens. Medical studies have shown that lycopen effectively protects against free radicals. It stabilises the cell membranes, thus protecting the cells. This is why scientists think that lycopen is one of the most effective substances protecting against cancer and strokes.
In summer, it’s easy for the consumer to keep a varied diet: fresh, sun-ripened fruits and vegetables are available in abundance. In Europe, the season for savoury outdoor tomatoes is only from July to October, though. Otherwise, the tomatoes on sale are mainly grown in greenhouses or under plastic and are often picked while still green. Lacking aroma is a consequence of lacking sunlight and early picking.
Grown in the right conditions, tomatoes will store the sunlight; the more light they get and the riper they are when picked, the higher their nutrient content and the better their taste.
Scientific tests have shown that the flavour of a tomato, which is characterised by a delicate interaction between sugar and acid as well as a minimum of 400 volatile substances, is mainly determined by the climate. While the variety, cultivation method and origin also come into play, they are not the key factors.
Consumers who wish to enjoy the taste and the valuable nutrients of their favourite vegetable in spring and winter, too, now have a tasty and high-quality alternative to the fresh product: HTST (high temperature, short time) treated tomato products aseptically packed in beverage cartons.
SIG Combibloc, one of the world-leading system suppliers of aseptic beverage cartons and the related filling machines, has developed a technology which allows not only beverages such as milk, juice, water and wine but also chunky food products to be packed aseptically - and thus carefully preserving the product and its vitamin content - in cartons.
The success story began in 1985: The first carton filled with soup containing chunky ingredients with a size of up to 9 millimetres revolutionised the food packaging sector. That same year saw the marketing of the first tomato products packed in combibloc cartons. Today, products with chunky ingredients of up to 15 millimetres can be packed aseptically - individual fibres may measure up to 40 millimetres in length (e.g. soy sprouts or onions). The chunky ingredients may account for up to 50 percent of the product.
SIG Combibloc has constantly expanded its product range, especially in the tomato segment. The first carton-packed products to line the shelves in Germany and Italy were strained tomatoes (passato), followed by tomato pulp (polpa). The system used by the SIG Combibloc filling machines ensures particularly safe filling of the cartons. After the product has been filled into the carton, the filling machines close the top seam of the sleeve above the filling level to avoid fibre inclusions, making the seam absolutely tight.
The tomato pulp was followed by tomato sauces containing spices and vegetables (high acid). As a next step, chunks of meat were added to the tomato-based sauces (low acid). Today’s product range comprises a wide variety of ready-to-serve sauces, especially for pizza and pasta dishes.
From the field directly into the carton
Only fully ripe tomatoes are filled into cartons. Immediately after picking, they are processed and preserved before being filled into cartons. The tasteful tomatoes are packed aseptically directly in their country of origin. “Aseptic” is a term from the medical sector and refers to a special method for killing micro-organisms capable of reproduction. The advantage over conventional sterilisation is that the product and the pack are sterilised separately.
The food is heated extremely fast at a very high temperature. After flash cooling, it is filled into beverage cartons that have been sterilised parallel to this process. In the SIG Combicloc filling machines, this takes place in a sterile zone. The gentle HTST process and the aseptic filling ensure that all vitamins and minerals needed for a healthy diet are largely preserved in the product.
In conventional sterilisation, by contrast, the germs are killed only after the product has been filled into the pack. It takes a long time for both the product and the pack to reach the necessary temperature and cool down again afterwards.
Not so in the HTST process: Depending on the size, content and viscosity of the chunks, aseptic tomato production, for instance, requires a heating time of only approx. 30 seconds to 3 minutes at a temperature of approx. 105 to 120 °C. Vitamins, flavours and natural colours are preserved for a long time without refrigeration and chemical preservatives.
Flexible use
Especially designed for food products, the SIG Combibloc filling machines allow highly viscous or chunky product ingredients to be mixed with liquid ingredients in the same pack while meeting their different heat treatment requirements. This is made possible by a two-phase filling technology. Individual product components are treated individually in separate machine sections before being filled into sterilised beverage cartons. Depending on the product requirements, sterile barriers (sterile air or steam) may be activated, for instance.
The combibloc filling machines are designed for flexible use. Both high-acid and low-acid products can be filled on the same machine. All food filling machines are suitable for filling viscous and chunky as well as liquid products. Differences between these special food filling machines and standard filling machines include the filling spouts and valves, a larger cross-section of the product pipes and a modified product pumping and cleaning system.
A study by the Cornell University, New York State, has shown that the healthy effect of tomatoes increases after a short heat treatment. If tomatoes are heated in a little bit of oil, the lycopene antioxidant, which is one of the most effective weapons against cancer and infarcts, can be absorbed more easily by the human body. When heated, the lycopene is released from the tomato cells and converted into a form that is more readily absorbed by the human body. According to the study, the lycopene content more than doubles in this way. This is yet another proof that tomato products packed in aseptic cartons make it easy for consumers to eat a tasty, varied and healthy diet also out of the tomato season.
Captions:
pastös_top:
The combibloc filling machines are designed for flexible use. Both high-acid and low-acid products can be filled on the same machine.
stückig_top:
Especially designed for food products, the SIG Combibloc filling machines allow highly viscous or chunky product ingredients to be mixed with liquid ingredients in the same pack while meeting their different heat treatment requirements. This is made possible by a two-phase filling technology. Individual product components are treated individually in separate machine sections before being filled into sterilised beverage cartons. Depending on the product requirements, sterile barriers (sterile air or steam) may be activated, for instance.
Liebig:
The system used by the SIG Combibloc filling machines ensures particularly safe filling of the cartons. After the product has been filled into the carton, the filling machines close the top seam of the sleeve above the filling level to avoid fibre inclusions, making the seam absolutely tight.
Tomaten:
Over 1,000 different varieties are cultivated today. The red pigment of a fully ripe tomato supplies valuable nutrients for our health. Potassium is the most important mineral. It controls the distribution of fluid in the body and also has a purifying effect. In addition, the mineral lowers the blood pressure.
Ernte/Tomatenmeer:
Only fully ripe tomatoes are filled into cartons. Immediately after picking, they are processed and preserved before being filled into cartons.
SIG Combibloc is one of the world's leading systems suppliers of aseptic beverage cartons and filling machines. Employing approx. 4,060 people, the company recorded sales of EUR 1,075 million in 2004. SIG Combibloc is a division of SIG Holding AG, Neuhausen am Rheinfall.