Tetra Alwin® Soy Soya extraction unit • Lower bean cost thanks to high protein extraction yield A flexible production system for continuous extraction of both beany and low-beany soya base from soya beans. The soya base is blended, UHT-treated and packaged in subsequent processing equipment. • Good flexibility to produce desired taste • Quick conversion from bean to product • Lower water consumption • Less product loss • Less environmental impact • Easy to clean with CIP • High production-to-footprint ratio • Consistent quality • Easy operation, with less risk of error Working principle Soya beans (whole or dehulled) are fed into a silo tank in the grinding section. No prior soaking is required. The beans are transferred by gravity via a dosing valve into a hopper, to which hot water is added via a control valve. A positive pump transfers the beans and water to two grinders – a perforated disc mill followed by a colloid mill – where they are ground to a slurry for transfer to the fibre separation section. By controlling the grinding temperature, a soya base with either a beany or a low-beany taste profile can be achieved. In the latter case, sodium bicarbonate may be added to further reduce the beany taste.

In the fibre separation section, fibrous residue (okara) is separated from the soya base by high-speed centrifugal force using one or two decanters. In a one-decanter system, the okara is removed by a positive pump for disposal, and the soya base is sent to the next section, enzyme deactivation. In a twodecanter system, the okara from the first decanter is collected, water is added for protein recovery, and the mixture is sent to the second decanter for separation. The okara is then removed for disposal while the soya base from the second decanter is used for grinding the beans. The enzyme deactivation...