INDUFOOD - REDUCING GHG EMISSIONS IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY THROUGH ALTERNATIVE THERMAL SYSTEMS BASED ON INDUCTION TECHNOLOGY LIFE11 ENV/ES/000530

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1 INDUFOOD - REDUCING GHG EMISSIONS IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY THROUGH ALTERNATIVE THERMAL SYSTEMS BASED ON INDUCTION TECHNOLOGY LIFE11 ENV/ES/ Project description Environmental issues Beneficiaries Administrative data Read more Contact details: Contact person: Francisco PEREZ fsabin@anfaco.es Project description: Background Industrial processing of seafood requires a large amount of energy. Due to the type of product and the necessity to keep it fresh for consumption at a later date, there is a high energy demand for thermal processes such as freezing, cooking and sterilisation. This contributes significantly to the cost of the final product and to the carbon footprint of the industry. Seafood processing industries are actively seeking solutions to improve their systems and processes in order to reduce costs and increase productivity. At the same time, they are aware of their responsibility to contribute to the fight against climate change. Reducing energy consumption and switching to cleaner, alternative energy sources are thus major areas of interest for the sector. ANFACO-CECOPESCA is a certified reference centre for quality control and R&D in the fish and aquaculture processing industry and is recognised by the European Accreditation Laboratory (EAL). It identified the replacement of energy-intensive thermal processes in the processing of seafood as the main contribution the sector could make to reducing CO2 emissions. Objectives The main objective of the INDUFOOD project was to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from thermal processes in the food and seafood processing industry. It aimed to design, develop and test a new induction system, to provide an alternative source of heat and avoid the use of fossil fuels. The

2 project ultimately hopes to contribute to the implementation of EU commitments under the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC. As well as building the pilot plant for the induction system, the project aimed to develop a software application to calculate the carbon footprint of different functional units, including CO2 emissions generated by each system. The project planned to analyse different thermal systems used in the cooking and sterilisation of seafood, and to demonstrate both the feasibility of the new technology and its benefits in terms of increased energy efficiency, reduced costs and lower GHG emissions. Results The INDUFOOD project developed alternative heat treatment systems, based on induction technology, to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the thermal processing of fish and seafood for canning. Regular thermal processes consume 75% of the total power consumed by fish and seafood processing industries, so the induction technology will avoid the use of fossil fuels, promote the use of renewable energy sources, and increase the energy efficiency of processes to achieve economic savings. The project showed that a company could reduce or even eliminate (using electricity only from renewable sources) its GHG emissions. The project team designed and manufactured two new thermal systems using induction technology: one with an induction cooker and the other with an induction autoclave for sterilising. These were placed in the facilities of ANFACO-CECOPESCA, where they can be visited by any food industry interested in this technology. The industrial-scale prototype cooker is configured to work vertically with water and/or steam, and digital management systems. The project team used CAD/CAE prefabrication tools and conducted re-engineering tasks to achieve the best energy efficiency performance. The prototype autoclave for the sterilisation process consists of an airtight container that is put under pressure. It needs to resist different cycles of heating/cooling, and the project adjusted it accordingly. The horizontal autoclave works with standard industrial canning carts. With a view to validation and optimisation, the project performed pilot-scale tests. The cooker and autoclave tests were performed using both traditional steam boiler techniques and the new induction technology, for comparison. The beneficiaries carried out efficiency analyses at all levels, both energy and water consumption, focusing on its final industrial implementation. Distribution and heat penetration tests were carried out inside the prototypes during the processes. The results from these tests showed a reduction of 30% in the energy consumption (and subsequently in CO2 emissions), and 20% in the water consumption (mainly to cool the cans) using induction systems in comparison to the standard steam boiler technology. In addition, the induction system can be powered using renewable energy and in this case the CO2 emissions from the cooking and the sterilisation processes would be reduced by 100%. The change from steam to induction will be most cost-effective for companies that have their own energy generation system, especially renewable energy sources. A canning company consumes 250 tonnes per year of fuel on average, 90% of which is consumed in the thermal processes. Therefore, with the system tested in the project, 67.5 tonnes per year of fuel could be saved. Since in Spain there are

3 around 150 canning companies, if the system tested in the project was implemented in all of them, a total of tonnes of fuel would be saved. Taking into account that 1 kg of fuel emits 3.18 kg of CO2 (Spanish Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving-IDAE), a reduction of tonnes of CO2 could be achieved. In terms of socio-economic benefits, the improved energy efficiency of 20% reduces fuel consumption, with savings in production costs. Along with reductions in water consumption, this could be particularly important in the south of Spain or other arid EU areas were the technological approach can be replicated. The induction technology is transferable for other canned food products. The development of this innovative technology has also helped to created high-skilled workers. The project helps achieve the objectives of the "Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe" (COM/2011/0571 final) and EU strategy targets. It also helps implement European Climate Change Programme guidelines. In addition, by reducing industrial water consumption the project is in line with Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) objectives. Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report and After-LIFE Communication Plan (see "Read more" section). Environmental issues addressed: Themes Industry-Production - Food and Beverages Climate change Mitigation - GHG reduction in non EU ETS sectors Climate change Mitigation - Energy efficiency Keywords energy saving emission reduction food production greenhouse gas alternative technology Target EU Legislation Water COM(2012)673 -"A Blueprint to Safeguard Europe's Water Resources" Climate Change & Energy efficicency Directive 2012/27 - Energy efficiency ( ) Natura 2000 sites

4 Not applicable Beneficiaries: Coordinator Type of organisation Description Partners Asociación Nacional de Fabricantes de Conservas de Pescados y Mariscos - Centro Técnico Nacional de Conservación de Productos de la Pesca. ( ANFACO-CECOPESCA) Professional organisation The Spanish National Association of Fish and Seafood Canning Manufacturers (ANFACO-CECOPESCA) is a non-profit organisation, with a technical centre working on research and technological development. GH Electrotermia S.A., Spain Hermanos Rodríguez Gómez S.A., Spain Administrative data: Project reference LIFE11 ENV/ES/ Duration 01-AUG-2012 to 31-OCT Total budget 1,097, EU contribution 548, Project location Galicia(España) Comunidad Valenciana(España) Read more: Leaflet Leaflet Title: "Reducción de las emisiones de GEI en la industria alimentaria, mediante nuevos sistemas térmicos basados en tecnología de inducción [Projects leaflet]" (1.27 MB) Year: 2014 Editor: ANFACO-CECOPESCA No of pages: 2 Title: "Reducing GHG emissions in the food industry through alternative thermal systems based on induction technology [Project leaflet]" (1.27 MB) Year: 2014 Editor: ANFACO-CECOPESCA No of pages: 2

5 Poster Title: "Reducción de emisiones de Gases Efecto Invernadero (GEI) en la industria alimentaria, mediante nuevos sistemas térmicos basados en tecnología de inducción" (4.46 MB) Author: Alonso-Baptista de Sousa, R.C., Meniño, J.L.,... Year: 2015 Editor: VII Conferencia Mundial Del Atún (Vigo, Spain) No of pages: 1 Project web site Project's website Publication: After-LIFE Title: After-LIFE Communication Plan (Spanish Communication Plan version) No of pages: 5 Publication: After-LIFE Title: After-LIFE Communication Plan No of Communication Plan pages: 9 Publication: Layman report Title: Layman report No of pages: 9 Publication: Layman report Title: Informe layman No of pages: 9 Publication: Technical report Title: Project's Final technical report Year: 2016 Editor: ANFACO-CECOPESCA No of pages: 52 Project description Environmental issues Beneficiaries Administrative data Read more