The perfect polish

Date: 13/01/2012

13 January 2012 – When the public buy their candies and chocolates they are very rarely, if ever, aware that these pieces only look so appealing because they have been carefully polished and glazed. Without this vital finishing process the sweets would not only look unattractive but the chocolate or sugar coating would end up on fingers. Having made the product look good it is then necessary to seal this shine with a moisture resistant barrier. "The best solution is to apply a shellac glaze. Mantrose Haeuser have been one of the world’s largest shellac manufacturers for over a century, and using a glaze such as Crystalac can extend the shelf life from 12 – 16 weeks to eighteen months in some cases,” says Jenny Seaborn of Mantrose.

“Capol produces a range of standard products with many tailor made products to suit specific demands of their customers. Capol’s products are marketed under the registered trademarks Capol (Glazing agents for chocolate and sugar coated items, gums, jellies etc), Capolex (Release/anti-sticking agents, slab oils), Fix Gum (Pre-coating systems) and Capolan (Special applications eg coated edible acids),” says Nick Hewitt of Capol.

Coating and panning - An art or a science?

“If it is based on science, can you automate the process and remove the inconsistencies?

“Controlling the parameters should allow this to happen; if the centres, chocolate or sugar coating, air conditions and environment remain constant then the process should also remain unchanged.

“A level of control over production parameters is required to enable a controllable process: with ingredients, process air, storage conditions etc. all playing an important role.

“Environmental changes such as a wet day in summer or a cold dry day in winter, may alter the processed air being used. This will lead to process times having to be altered. Not amending the process to take account of these changes, is likely to result in a lower quality finish on the product,” explains Hewitt.

Pre coating
“All the components of the finished product can affect the appearance. With the stability of the centres just as important as the final layer – Fix Gum has been created to seal the centre and avoid the migration of moisture or fat to the surface,” conveys Hewitt.

Starch based Fix Gum pre-coating agents are used to produce a base layer on which to coat a variety of different centres. They consist of maltodextrine and other modified starches, and are ready for use and easy to apply.

When used in the production of sugar free confectionery, the sugar can be replaced by various polyols. For diabetic confectionery the starch can be replaced with gum arabic.

Precoating ensures that even sticky centres, such as candied orange peel or fruit pieces, are free flowing and can be easily coated with sugar or chocolate. Thus almost eliminating ‘doubles’ or ‘triples’ even if the centres themselves are as small as 5mm.

The Fix Gum range includes Fix Gum A (liquid) and Fix Gum B (powder) and is used as a first coat application on nuts, raisins, dried fruit, liquorice ropes, gums and jelly products. They can also be used on chocolate centres, chewing gum balls and pellets prior to the application of a sugar coating.

Capol 236N and 4958 - are also pre-coating agents for nuts and raisins prior to coating with chocolate or sugar, or for chocolate coated centres before sugar coating them. They are water based solutions of natural food ingredients

Chocolate
Polishing agents from Mantrose are aqueous gum based products that smooth the surface of chocolate confections and provide gloss and a solvent barrier solution. “Mantrose Certiseal 1265A can be used on all chocolate, from dark to white and compounds, as the pale colour does not leave a tint,” says Seaborn.

Capol 254N chocolate polish is used to glaze milk and dark chocolate centres, whereas Capol 254W has been specifically developed for use on white chocolate and yoghurt coated centres. Sometimes, under difficult production conditions, such as using soft chocolate, it is necessary to pre-glaze chocolate coated centres, in which case it may be advantageous to apply Capol 4648 prior to using the relevant glaze.

“The gum arabic solution is applied in several decreasing doses and the friction from the tumbling produces the shine. The first, and largest dose smoothes the surface and provides a good base on which to achieve the shine. The shine will not be evident after this first dose, but with every succeeding dose it will increase and probably by the fifth dose a really good gloss will be achieved. The dosage rate will be relative to the surface area – experienced panners are well aware of this and make their own judgements,” explains Seaborn.

Sugar confectionery
The process is similar for sugar shell, but using a wax instead of gum arabic and usually only one dose is necessary. Powdered Carnauba can be used, but this can lead to white spotting. “To solve this problem Mantrose recommend Licabee which is a blend of Carnauba and Beeswax in d-Limonene solvent. This gives a really good gloss after only 15 to 20 minutes and can be used on both soft and hard sugar shell to equally good effect and no white spotting,“ suggests Seaborn.

The polishing is the most time consuming of the finishing process, and the final essential step of glazing to seal the shine is very brief.

“Shellac is the most efficient of the natural edible moisture barriers available. Mantrose Haeuser always use their top grades of shellac when making confectionery glazes such as Crystalac I. This ensures that there is no colour change to light coloured panned sweets. There is a very low dosage rate, typically 0.2 per cent and as well as giving protection the shellac adds more gloss,” says Seaborn.

Capol produce anti-sticking agents for moulded wine gums, liquorice and jellies which are used for the surface treatment of all kinds of confectionery, including sugar free.

They are used on a wide range of confectionery such as gelatin or starch based gums, or pastilles based on starch and gum arabic. In addition to being used in extruded and moulded liquorice.

These highly stable products, often referred to as ‘wine gum oils’, are based on a suspension of carnauba wax, beeswax or a mix of the two in vegetable oil. They provide excellent anti-sticking properties and resistance to oxidation.

The Capol anti-sticking agents create a high level of gloss and increase the transparency of the gums, avoiding early drying and reduce surface cracking. They are delivered ready to use in their ambient state with no heating required and can be applied via a suitable spraying system or dosing pump.

Standard products such as Capol 3073A, 3073B, 4348 and 4468D are successfully used, with modified versions available which include the addition of flavour which give a burst of flavour when a bag of finished product is opened.

When applying Capol anti-sticking agents to the surface of extruded liquorice, a dipping bath is recommended. Products such as Capol 180L have been specifically developed for this application.

Anti-sticking agents play a vital part in the production of sugar confectionery, allowing the inherently sticking sugar centres to be formed, deposited, cut and wrapped. “Capolex products have evolved to meet our customer’s needs, solving and allowing the smooth flow of production, bringing a smile to the face of many a production manager,” says Hewitt

Problems that may be encountered
Polishing is normally a straightforward procedure, but occasionally it can prove difficult to obtain a shine on panned chocolate. “Deterioration in a finished product’s appearance can result from a problem early on in the production process, as trapped moisture or fat can leach to the surface,” states Hewitt.

The most common reason for having difficulties in achieving a good shine would be too high temperature (over 20°c) or relative humidity (over 55 per cent). It is also recommended to have chocolate engrossed pieces as cool and firm as possible before polishing is commenced. “Sugar shell is much more forgiving, particularly where temperature is concerned, but when the shellac Crystalac I glaze is applied attention should be paid to the surface area as over application can cause problems with ‘clumping’, and even occasionally pulling the sugar shell off. Shellac is a strong adhesive, which means there is no danger of the coating ‘lifting’, but we also caution that less is more, as with all Mantrose products,” states Seaborn.

“The factors affecting the efficiency of a confectionery plant are numerous, but if the ingredients and variable inputs can be quantified, the production process will be far easier to control. For example, if the temperature, relative humidity and air volume can be controlled it is much more likely that a consistent and successful polishing process can be set up,” summarises Hewitt.

Reformulations
In collaboration with several French universities and independent laboratories, Stéarinerie Dubois has worked on reformulations to increase performance and expand its clean manufacturing processes to meet the most recent eco-responsible specifications.

Jean Philippe Roquigny of Stéarinerie Dubois, says, “The shine of all our glazing products is now evaluated by scientific methods to eliminate subjectivity in measuring the product quality and consistency of chocolates, jelled and hard sugar coated products.”

One range of products to have undergone reformulation is the pan oil gum gloss coating agents, which contain vegetable oil and waxes. It is recommended as an anti-sticking and glazing agent for gelatin, starch, pectin and wine gums and has a high barrier and occlusive properties. It can be used discontinuously in conventional coating pans equipped with baffles or automatic oiling pans.

An important part of the reformulation focuses on new ways to create and extract ingredients, reuse by-products and process waste. Located in the heart of a nature park in Scoury, the Stéarinerie Dubois factory has, ever since it was opened, used clean production processes. In compliance with the guidelines of the various eco-labels on the market, it offers a response to clients' new specifications, backed by a reliable analytical monitoring system.

Roquigny concludes, “We are investing in new rheological equipment and a new steaming room to control the final product under international ICH rules. In 2012, we will introduce a new range of glazing products who will improve glazing and reduce process time and we have several projects pending, which we look forward to sharing with the industry.”

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