[DOWNERS GROVE, Illinois, April 2022] Flavorchem, a global flavor and ingredient supplier, continues its commitment to customer collaboration and innovation with the new state-of the-art pilot plant at their Downers Grove campus. The fully automated, custom-designed pilot plant utilizes the latest in thermal processing capabilities and features three separate dedicated spaces for extractions and experimental technologies.

“We are privileged to work with some of the most progressive and dynamic companies in our industry and are thrilled to be able to take them to the next level with our pilot plant. Our pilot plant was designed with flexibility, scalability, and will further advance our capabilities to be a valued extension of our customers’ R&D and commercialization processes,” says Ken Malinowski, President of Flavorchem.

The new thermal processing unit allows Flavorchem to simulate HTST, UHT and aseptic conditions with both indirect heating and direct steam injection and is fully expandable to allow for customer specific equipment to be used and additional processing equipment to be added seamlessly. Filling capabilities include a clean fill hood for hot – and cold-fill of glass and plastic bottles along with an aseptic bag filler.

“It’s been a pleasure to oversee the development and utilization of our brand-new pilot plant facility,” says Blake Wester, Innovation & Technology Manager at Flavorchem. “Our specialized equipment allows us to explore cutting-edge flavor technology to test flavors, extracts, and ingredients in different finished applications and provides our customers the opportunity to test their products on a pilot scale before they scale up into production.”

The ability to run the customer’s actual product or base at a pilot scale allows developers to formulate flavors that are optimized for production. This approach accelerates brand owners’ speed to market while providing full confidence that the flavor will perform in the finished product the same way it did in the pilot plant. The equipment can run a variety of products including beverages, syrups, fillings, sauces, ice cream, and yogurt.