Plant-based beverages

PLANT-BASED FOR EVERY TASTE: INTEGRATED SOLUTIONS

With applications to produce “dairy alternative” products such as soy, oat, almond, peanut, rice and coconut milk from raw materials, along with specialist test facilities, GEA has developed a wide range of expertise to tackle upcoming challenges for this category of product.

No matter where you’re born, the first thing you taste as a baby is milk. But, in an ever-changing world, providing the best for your child is not always easy. More and more people are adopting flexitarian eating habits, vegetarianism or vegan diets as a response to concerns about the ecological footprint of some foods and beverages, animal welfare and overall health and wellbeing.

With cutting-edge technologies, process modules and lines, integrated solutions, decades of experience and a dedicated global team, GEA is working with its customers to design, install and support manufacturing plant for this growing market.

Acknowledging the variation in flavor and product type in different regions, GEA is well-positioned to satisfy customers all over the world. Our global plant-based beverage team is dedicated to supporting clients, wherever they are and whatever their application, to ensure that our expertise, innovation and development skills are available to all. At GEA, sustainable solutions are of utmost importance: by integrating our process solutions with our in-house cooling and heating solutions in the early phase, your plant will be designed with optimized energy efficiency, minimized operating costs and reduced carbon footprint.

Whether you’re a beverage manufacturer who wants to discover a new market, a dairy producer who wants to expand your product range or already have a strong brand in the market and want to stay ahead of the competition, contact us today and together, we can design the solution that’s tailored to your every need.

1. Raw materials handling

The handling and processing of a variety of materials such as beans, nuts, grains and flour as well as additives later in the process is a key challenge. With GEA’s technologies and design capability, a refined process can be developed to achieve the necessary flexibility and high performance, while maintaining raw material quality.
2. Extraction

Using experience, expertise, research and partnering, the overall extraction design is developed to suit the product or range of products to be manufactured. Designing the extraction line requires significant know-how around hydrolysis, enzymation and separation. In GEA, we have the combination of know-how, experience and technologies. With testing capabilities which enables the performing of trials from the grain or bean, to the final aseptic product, the process can be designed to fit exactly the customer’s desired recipe, flavour and quality.
3. Beverage preparation

Using the base product from the extraction process, the final plant-based drink can be formed if required by the recipe with additives or other components blended with it.
4. Concentration

With solids content in a base or intermediate product there is potential to increase this further with freeze concentration, membrane technology, evaporation and spray drying.
5. Blowing, filling & packaging

Featuring H2O2- or PAA-based sterilization process for HDPE/PET containers, the blowing, filling & capping systems from GEA benefit of a fully aseptic, constantly monitored process implementation to ensure the safety of premium sensitive products.
6. Clean-in-place

Effective CIP solutions remove any leftover product from the plant, tank surfaces, heat exchangers, pumps, pipes, etc. Systems with SIP (Sterilize-in-Place) functionality for high microbiologic control can be integrated.
7. Automation & control systems

Advanced process control tools enable consistent, and robust process conditions with the highest efficiency levels and minimum energy consumption.
8. Flow components

To ensure safe and sustainable production processes in the treatment of liquid products, GEA flow components offer a comprehensive range of valves for all hygienic classes, as well as hygienic pumps and cleaning technology. Their modular design allows to create future-proof process solutions for the most challenging production tasks.
9. Refrigeration & heating

GEA experts can integrate sustainable cooling & heating solutions with the whole beverage process in the best possible way, resulting in lower energy consumption, minimized operating costs, and reduced carbon footprint.

1. Raw materials handling

The handling and processing of a variety of materials such as beans, nuts, grains and flour as well as additives later in the process is a key challenge. With GEA’s technologies and design capability, a refined process can be developed to achieve the necessary flexibility and high performance, while maintaining raw material quality.
3. Beverage preparation

Using the base product from the extraction process, the final plant-based drink can be formed if required by the recipe with additives or other components blended with it.
5. Blowing, filling & packaging

Featuring H2O2- or PAA-based sterilization process for HDPE/PET containers, the blowing, filling & capping systems from GEA benefit of a fully aseptic, constantly monitored process implementation to ensure the safety of premium sensitive products.
7. Automation & control systems

Advanced process control tools enable consistent, and robust process conditions with the highest efficiency levels and minimum energy consumption.
9. Refrigeration & heating

GEA experts can integrate sustainable cooling & heating solutions with the whole beverage process in the best possible way, resulting in lower energy consumption, minimized operating costs, and reduced carbon footprint.

2. Extraction

Using experience, expertise, research and partnering, the overall extraction design is developed to suit the product or range of products to be manufactured. Designing the extraction line requires significant know-how around hydrolysis, enzymation and separation. In GEA, we have the combination of know-how, experience and technologies. With testing capabilities which enables the performing of trials from the grain or bean, to the final aseptic product, the process can be designed to fit exactly the customer’s desired recipe, flavour and quality.
4. Concentration

With solids content in a base or intermediate product there is potential to increase this further with freeze concentration, membrane technology, evaporation and spray drying.
6. Clean-in-place

Effective CIP solutions remove any leftover product from the plant, tank surfaces, heat exchangers, pumps, pipes, etc. Systems with SIP (Sterilize-in-Place) functionality for high microbiologic control can be integrated.
8. Flow components

To ensure safe and sustainable production processes in the treatment of liquid products, GEA flow components offer a comprehensive range of valves for all hygienic classes, as well as hygienic pumps and cleaning technology. Their modular design allows to create future-proof process solutions for the most challenging production tasks.