FAQ

The secret ingredient in your coffee packaging

Most coffee drinkers pay little attention to coffee packaging. Unless it won’t open when they want it to. Or when a striking design catches their eye. Still, coffee packaging is more than the recipient that holds their precious caffeinated relief. It plays a crucial role in ensuring coffee’s freshness, preserving its flavor, and extending its shelf life. To achieve all of these benefits, coffee packaging relies on nitrogen. 

Types of coffee packaging

Coffee packaging
Coffee packaging comes in different types, which are largely determined by how people prefer to make their coffee. We all know the tins and bags with ground or whole coffee beans. Both traditional coffee makers and fancy espresso machines use them. The pods for individual coffee capsule systems are a more recent success. And then there are the bulk bags that coffee shops use. For each of these packaging types, there is a dedicated filling and packaging machine. These include vertical form fill seal (VFFS) machines, capsule packing, and tin filling machines.

What role does nitrogen play in packaging?

As explained before, coffee loses its flavor and freshness quickly after it has been roasted and ground. Coffee that is not properly stored after it is roasted will lose a large amount of carbon dioxide. This affects its flavor and speeds up the deterioration process. That is where nitrogen comes in. More specifically, that is why packaging is inerted with nitrogen. It expels the oxygen and moisture that can make coffee go bad. Nitrogen is colorless and odorless, so it has no effect on the flavor or appearance of coffee over time.

Of course, not any nitrogen will do. Roasteries must follow European and global standards for food-grade nitrogen. This is to prevent oxygen contamination, which can cause entire product batches to get discarded.

Where to get nitrogen for coffee?

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There are two ways to obtain nitrogen: you can buy it or you can produce your own with a compressor and nitrogen generator. Specialized vendors sell gaseous nitrogen in cylinders or liquid nitrogen that is held in large containers. However, producing your own nitrogen on-site gives you more supply control. It is also more cost-efficient. And it allows you to eliminate the carbon emissions and logistics hassles of nitrogen transport and delivery.

The nitrogen generation experts

Pneumatech understands the nitrogen requirements of roasteries of all types and sizes. In addition, we have the product range and the expertise to recommend the on-site nitrogen generation solution that will work best for your roastery. Our representatives are always happy to answer all your questions. Don’t hesitate to contact us today!

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