Apple Food Systems was launched in January 2009 as a newly formed partnership established to market, sell, manufacture and service Apple International Food Processing Machinery to industries located in the Americas. This joint venture embraces the engineering expertise of Apple International, headquartered in Sutton Fields Industrial Estate, Hull, England, and the manufacturing expertise of pāco manufacturing^®, headquartered in Clarksville, Indiana, USA.  Apple Food Systems designs, manufactures, installs and services food depositors, transfer pumps, piston fillers, volumetric fillers, cake decorating systems, automated cake lines, multi-head depositors and custom food processing equipment.  

In October 2009, Apple Food Systems made their inaugural public debut at the 2009 Process Expo which was held in Las Vegas, Nevada.  This Expo was actually only one segment of a massive three-part exposition being presented during the first week in October.  It was a splendid opportunity to display and promote proven food processing technology to the Americas while publicizing to the food industry our new foothold within the USA

Food Processing Depositors (Fillers)

The U.S. based company provides a complete range of food processing machinery and food processing systems which can be utilized by the processing segment of the Food Industry. Apple Food Systems offers as many as seven different size ranges of volumetric depositors (fillers), including the ability of filling machines to deposit to tolerances of less than 1 gram.  Depositors are available for  product processing applications involving cake batters, custard & creams, jams & jelly, yogurt, mayonnaise, chocolate, fondant & food pastes.  The MR900 series depositor is pneumatically operated and can be supplied with four sizes of product cylinder, providing an accurate weight range of 20 - 1250g, up to 60 cycles per minute. The machine is extremely robust and is designed to withstand the most demanding conditions with minimum maintenance. ‘Lubrication free’ pneumatic components can be fitted as an option. Apple International is recognized as a leader in the industry, and is now supplying proven world-wide technology to companies in the Americas.

Depositing systems can be designed to incorporate multi-head depositors, along with many types of outlets.  The various types of outlets include General Purpose Outlets for liquids and solids in suspension; vertical movement Suck Back Outlets which can be fitted with individually designed decorating heads incorporating plain tubes or star tubes creating a wide diversity of unique patterns for cake decorating or topping off  a wide variety of ready meals; to Rotary  Spade Cut-Off Outlets which provide a full cover deposit of material over a specific area.  Stainless Steel decorating heads can be manufactured to deposit a unique and individual finish to cakes and Gateaux.  Custom food quality Nylon decorating heads can also be manufactured to create a wider diversity of unique patterns and even more complex food decorating options.

Food Processing Transfer Pumps

In addition to developing and manufacturing full turnkey systems, Apple Food Systems offers high speed, multi-head, top or side injection systems; multi-head, electro/pneumatic volumetric depositors with auto product calibration and menu selection facilities; and multi-pitch, multi-functional indexing systems for all food product types with menu selection facilities. The TP1750 Transfer Pump is designed to transfer a wide variety of thin or viscous food product materials with temperatures ranging from 5° - 100° Celsius safely and easily.  The pump can be easily adapted to fit customers' existing product holding tanks allowing for the operator to take advantage of taking the pump directly to the food product source.

The METERITE Transfer Pump is constructed throughout in 316 grade stainless steel, fully pneumatic in operation with a 89mm bore product cylinder, giving a capacity of 1.25 liters per cycle at a maximum speed of 30 cycles per minute.  The METERITE Transfer Pump is available in three different configurations allowing the user absolute versatility.  Delicate food products are no problem for the METERITE Transfer Pump due to the large ported rotary D valve which allows products to flow totally unrestricted.  Picture at right shows the METERITE Transfer Pump mounted on a floor level stand supplying product to a MR900 Depositor.  Product is supplied by a fully mobile holding tank. 

Both types of transfer pumps are constructed throughout in stainless steel, are fully pneumatic in operation, and are capable of pumping a wide variety of thin or viscous food product materials.  The modular pump mechanism is built for easy strip down & product changeovers.

Food Processing Systems

Apple Food Systems currently offers a multitude of food processing systems such as the world’s first successful “Border Free” Pizza Sauce Depositing and Spreading System,  which offers the versatility of depositing particulated sauce as well as smooth sauces onto uneven and flat pizza bases; the herb and powder applicator, which is specifically designed to apply a range of herb and spice mixes onto meat in P.E.T. trays; the new Bucket Filling System, specifically designed to dispense a variety of tubs and buckets (with handles) onto an all stainless steel indexing conveyor with tool-less container changeovers; and a fully automated Container De-Nesting and Placing system, which offers magazine fed and accurate container placement in both scroll and reciprocating jaw types to suit pots, cups, trays and foils, while enabling the quickest changeover times possible.

Bakery Equipment

Apple Food Systems offers a quality line of custom built full turnkey systems which include top or side injection systems; multi-functional indexing systems; the Multi-Functional Compact Cassette Pump Systems for product decoration depositing and injection; the Ultra-Sonic Cake Cutter Systems; the Gateaux Assembly Line Systems; and the Automatic Cherry Placement Systems.  The Multi-Functional Compact Cassette Pump System is designed and engineered to offer the customer the ultimate in flexibility for product decoration depositing and injection;  the Automatic Cherry Placement System feeds in whole cherries, halves them, and accurately places the cherries onto the center of any type of confectionery or dessert requiring a decorative finish. The Ultra Sonic Cake & Pizza Cutter is designed to transport , center and cut round cakes into segments on an integrated linear conveyor; and the Gateaux Assembly Line provides the maximum level of versatility, with minimum change-over time, for the production of a wide range of Gateaux products (a rich cake, usually consisting of several layers held together with a cream filling).

History

Apple International Ltd. was established in 1985, bringing together 40 years of combined engineering and food process machinery experience.  It moved its headquarters to a larger premise in 1990, to its prestigious site on the Sutton Fields Industrial Estate in Hull, England.  For over twenty years, Apple International has been designing, developing and manufacturing fully automated systems and turnkey operations for the food industry in the UK and abroad.  Through Apple Food Systems, Apple International has expanded its manufacturing operations into the Americas, as it teams up with 55 years of machinery manufacturing expertise, quality and service provided by pāco manufacturing^®. Since 1953, pāco manufacturing^® has been a key player with OEM’s, the Automotive, Pharmaceutical, Medical Product, Consumer Product and Building Product Industries in the United States, specializing in complete machine building, offering engineering assistance from prototype to production, and quality manufacturing from highly trained machinists, fabricators, mechanics, electricians, controls experts, and assemblers.  Both companies impart years of experience and traditions of providing high quality automation systems and controls to improve productivity in customer’s product handling processes.

For more detailed information about Apple Food Systems’ volumetric depositor machines, injection systems, or automated food processing systems, please visit www.applefoodsystem.com .