British-based equipment business Baker Perkins, has unveiled its advanced new ServoForm Flexi+, starch-free gummy manufacturing system, writes Neill Barston.

As the company, which is now part of the global Coperion group, explained, its latest line has been developed to combine highly efficient depositing & demoulding technology with automated mould handling for sweets businesses.

It has also been designed for nutraceutical and functional product markets, which have both been experiencing notable rises in demand in recent years – as the firm explained to Confectionery Production at this year’s interpack event in Germany. 

Moreover,  the ServoForm Flexi+ system delivers the automation of traditional starch moguls while maintaining the operational advantages of a hygienic starch-free process.

“With the growing demand for functional and nutraceutical products, manufacturers need equipment that combines flexibility, efficiency and hygiene,” said Keith Graham, Business Development Manager at Baker Perkins.

“The ServoForm Flexi+ system gives them the freedom to work with a broad range of formulations and setting times while delivering the product quality and operating efficiencies expected from a Baker Perkins starch-free depositing system.”

The ServoForm Flexi+ depositing system offers outputs up to 1,000 kg/hr, making starch-free manufacturing available to volume producers. The precision and versatility of the Baker Perkins ServoForm depositor allows manufacturers to introduce new products, including centre-filled and 3D, scale existing production, and respond quickly to changing consumer trends without sacrificing efficiency or product consistency.

As the company added, the ServoForm Flexi+ gummy manufacturing system integrates the ServoForm starch-free depositor with innovative single-piece moulds and stable stacking configuration.

The mould’s rigid construction resists twisting, ensuring precise depositing accuracy and stable stacking, up to 25 moulds high, allowing effective airflow during conditioning. After depositing, the moulds are removed from the depositor and remain stacked while products develop full gel strength, enabling the system to accommodate a wider range of formulations and setting profiles.

The ServoForm Flexi+ can be integrated with Baker Perkins’ Microfilm cooking technology and downstream conditioning, demoulding, and finishing systems to provide a complete starch-free production solution.