Apple / Pear / Thorn-pear Juice Processing Line

What the Line Produces

The same process train serves two product routes. Clear juice is filtered, de-pectinised and polished for bottling or bag-in-box beverage packing. Concentrate is evaporated to a specified Brix, sterilised and filled aseptically into bag-in-drum for industrial customers or further dilution.

• Clear apple or pear juice — enzyme treatment, disc separation, ultrafiltration and resin polishing.
• Juice concentrate — multi-effect low-temperature vacuum evaporation with aroma recovery.
• Thorn-pear juice — processed with the same washing, crushing and pressing sequence, with enzyme dosage and filtration adjusted for its higher pulp and pectin content.
• Packaging formats — aseptic bag-in-drum as standard output, with PET bottle, glass bottle, gable top and tetra pack filling available as separate downstream equipment.

Process Sequence and Equipment

The line follows a fixed process logic, with each stage sized to the fruit input rate and the target finished-product quality. The table below shows our standard configuration and the role of each stage.

Capacity and Configuration Boundaries

Capacity is expressed as fresh fruit input, because that is the figure that determines washing, sorting, crushing and pressing duty. Evaporator and steriliser sizing then follows from the juice yield and the target Brix. For a plant processing apple only, the Apple Juice Production Line follows the same stages without the thorn-pear enzyme and filtration adjustments.

• Line capacity — 2–25 t/h fresh fruit input for this product family; pilot and laboratory scale available separately.
• Product routes — clear juice only, concentrate only, or a line switchable between both.
• Materials — product-contact parts in food-grade SUS304 or SUS316 stainless steel.
• Additives — vitamin C and citric acid dosed during extraction to protect colour and adjust acidity.
• Utilities — steam, cooling water, compressed air and CIP supply are defined during plant layout planning.

Fruit Quality and Yield

Apple and pear varieties differ in acidity, pectin and pulp structure, and thorn-pear carries more fibre into the press. We set crusher clearance, pre-heating temperature and enzyme dosage around the actual fruit so that pressing yield and clarification behave predictably from the first season. A dedicated Pear Juice Processing Line uses the same sequence, with crusher clearance and enzyme dosage set for pear pulp.

Belt pressing extracts juice at roughly 2–3% higher yield than traditional screw extraction, which matters at high input rates. Rotting fruit removed at the sorting stage protects both flavour and the downstream filtration load.

Controls and Automation

The line runs on a PLC control system with main electrical components from SIEMENS, SCHNEIDER or comparable international brands. Temperature, flow, Brix and CIP cycles are interlocked so that a deviation at evaporation or sterilisation stops the affected section rather than pushing off-spec product forward.

• Recipe management for different fruit and target Brix.
• Trend logging for sterilisation temperature and holding time.
• Aseptic zone pressure and sterility interlocks at the filler.
• CIP sequences matched to each equipment group.

Quality Control and Acceptance

Every line is assembled, water-tested and trial-run before shipment so that mechanical and control performance is proven before it leaves our works. Equipment is built to CE and ISO requirements, and documentation is prepared for the project.

At site, acceptance follows a written protocol: hydrostatic and CIP checks, sterilisation temperature verification, aseptic filling integrity and a first production run against the agreed product specification. Our engineers remain on site after commissioning to support initial production where the project calls for it.

Installation, Maintenance and Spare Parts

We provide plant layout guidance, utility requirements and building planning inputs before delivery, then on-site installation supervision, commissioning and operator training. Maintenance support covers spare parts supply, remote diagnosis, scheduled inspection and modernisation of older equipment.

Wear items on this line concentrate in the crusher, belt press, separator and homogenising valves, plus gaskets and aseptic filler seals. We recommend a critical spares list matched to the fruit season so that a shutdown does not wait on a shipment.

Where This Line Sits in Our Range

The same engineering platform serves other fruit and vegetable products, with process stages adapted to each raw material.

• Mango puree processing line — pulping rather than clear-juice clarification.
• Tomato paste processing line — hot-break and high-viscosity evaporation.
• Grape juice and wine processing line — pressing and fermentation-adjacent duty.

Information We Use to Configure Your Solution

A firm proposal needs the working point, not a general enquiry. The following inputs let us size each stage and confirm the equipment list.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can one line produce both clear juice and concentrate?

Yes. The clarification and evaporation sections can be combined so that clear juice is drawn off before the evaporator, or routed through it for concentrate. We confirm the valve and piping arrangement during process design.

How is thorn-pear handled differently from apple?

Thorn-pear carries more pulp and pectin, so enzyme dosage, holding time and filtration load are adjusted. Pressing and pre-heating settings are tuned to the fruit at commissioning.

What capacity range do you build for this product family?

Our apple, pear and thorn-pear lines cover 2–25 t/h of fresh fruit input, with pilot and laboratory scale equipment available for product development before a full line is committed.

Which materials are used for product contact parts?

Food-grade SUS304 or SUS316 stainless steel, selected according to the product acidity and the customer's specification. Equipment is built to CE and ISO requirements.

What happens after commissioning?

We train operators on operation, CIP and maintenance, and can leave engineers on site for the first production run. Annual pre-season inspection visits, spare parts supply and remote fault diagnosis continue through the life of the line.