Everything’s coming up fufu
A tropical foods company installs a vacuum conveying
system to improve its production process and increase powder conveying efficiency.
Traditional African food preparation and cooking is based on imagination, creativity, and flexibility, says Edward Ofori, president and CEO of Tropical Foods Co., Clifton, S.C. His company produces various flours used to make African foods, including fufu, one of Africa’s main food staples. Fufu is a starchy side dish closely resembling
dumplings that’s as popular in Africa as mashed potatoes are in the US. Tropical Foods distributes its fufu flour and other specialty flours and food items throughout the US, Asia, Africa, and Europe. When the company began production in 1987, it installed a screw conveyor system to transport the flour and other ingredients from the processing line to the packaging line. However, dust, spillage, and other problems not only were a nuisance, but kept the company from achieving optimum productivity. The company needed to find a more efficient way to transfer ingredients.