Cocoa Powder & Butter

Cocoa Powder and Butter Production

In 1828 CJ van Houten (a Dutch Chemist and Chocolate maker) patented a process for pressing cocoa butter out of roasted and ground cocoa nibs for the production of cocoa powder and cocoa butter.

Cocoa Pressing

Cocoa liquor itself consists of two (2) components; cocoa butter and cocoa powder. In a cocoa press the ‘solids’ (what will be cocoa powder) and the ‘liquids’ (cocoa butter) are separated by pushing the liquor up against a screen in a closed chamber – the screen is designed to let the butter pass through but to keep the ‘solids’ inside the chamber. Depending on the needed capacity a press can have anywhere from 6 to 20 of these chambers, typically referred to as ‘pots’. Separating the butter from the solids requires an astronomical amount force (generated hydraulically), at the end of the cycle the pressure reaches a peak of about 1,000 bar force on the product (15,000 pounds on every square inch). Because there is so much force put on the product, the ‘solids’ come out as hard as a brick, which is referred to as ‘cake’ and is later processed into cocoa powder.

Cocoa Butter Press

Cocoa Press Image

A cocoa butter press consists of a series of pots (and counter-pots) that are filled with cocoa liquor under high pressure. Each pot has a press plate and two layers of filters on either side of the chamber – while using hydraulic pressure to make the chambers smaller and smaller the filters will keep the solids inside (turns into a hard disk called cake!) while it lets the butter escape. The main benefit of hydraulic pressing is that it creates no sheer forces on the product and allows for exact control of the volume of cocoa butter pressed out ensuring optimum product quality. After a few minutes sufficient butter is pressed out (typically to about 10 – 12% rest fat in the cake, sometimes to 20 – 24%), the press opens and the cakes drop out to the convening system below. Before being transported to the cocoa powder milling system the cakes are first broken into smaller pieces called ‘kibble’. The cocoa butter presses have been proven to be the very best, capable of continuous operation with a very high capacity and an excellent output quality. The cocoa butter presses are the most efficient with the lowest operating costs by far and are THE world-wide standard in the cocoa industry.

Capacity

Press Type	Capacities [kg / hr] – low-fat cake	Capacities [kg / hr] – high fat cake
	300 - 500	500 - 1,200
	500 - 1,450	1,000 - 2,850
	1,000 - 1,550	1,500 - 3,100

Features

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Precision design and manufacturing, high quality and patented technology

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Use of only the highest quality durable materials, that are wear and distortion resistant

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Low operational cost

Benefits

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Extremely durable, low maintenance reliable equipment

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Residual fat content as low as 8% can be achieved

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All parts standardized – Pots and counter-pots are interchangeable

Butter Filtering

A cocoa butter filter is used to remove any remaining ‘solids’ from the cocoa butter after being pressed. Cocoa butter is clear when liquid and turns opaque/white when crystallized. A second process step, known as ‘deodorization’, is a process generally used to strip all flavor components from the cocoa butter, which has a very mild flavor to begin with. Cocoa butter (like cocoa liquor) is supplied in bulk mostly to the chocolate/confectionery and cosmetics industry. Deliveries are usually in 25 kilo blocks that need to be melted or ‘liquid loads’ from tanker trucks.

Cocoa Butter Filter

With this new concept, the old-fashioned horizontal cocoa butter filter cloth press has been replaced by our fully automatic cocoa butter filtration system. The new cocoa butter filtration system makes manual cleaning redundant and virtually eliminates manual labor. The fully automatic cocoa butter filter consists of a pressure vessel with vertically suspended filter elements on the inside.

During the cocoa butter filtration process, unfiltered cocoa butter is pumped into the pressure vessel; while being pressed through the system the solid particles remain on the outside of the filter cloth. Compressed air is used to automatically clean the filter cloths. The deposit (slurry) falls to the bottom of the vessel and is subsequently pumped back to the liquor tank. After the automatic cleaning cycle the system is again ready for production.

Capacity

Cocoa Butter Filter Type	Capacities kg / hr
750	250 - 750
1250	750 - 1,250
2300	1,250 - 2,300
3300	2,300 - 3,300
5000	3,300 - 5,000

Features

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Clean and closed system, stainless steel

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Continuous and fully automatic cocoa butter filter

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Automatic removal of the 'solids' that is returned to the press room

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Easy to operate

Benefits

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Virtually maintenance free

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Integrated buffering capacity allows for a continuous flow of cocoa butter

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Coca butter comes out absolutely crystal clear

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Easy to keep clean

Milling & Stabilizing

The ICM cocoa powder mill is used to mill cocoa kibble to the desired end-fineness in the cocoa powder. Cocoa powder must be extremely fine to prevent grittiness in the final consumer product such as ‘chocolate ice cream’. Since the solid ‘cake’ was previously refined during the ‘cocoa liquor’ milling phase, the classifier mill mostly deagglomerates the cake to turn it back into an extremely fine powder. A secondary process that takes place in the powder mill and then in two or sometime three ‘residence vessels’. This process is called cocoa powder ‘stabilization’ or ‘crystallization’. This unique process crystalizes the remaining cocoa butter in the powder, which is usually about 10 – 12%, sometimes 20 – 24%. If the cocoa powder is not stabilized correctly, it tends to have a flat color and lump back together, causing a variety of issues further into processing. Well stabilized cocoa powders with ‘beta 5’ crystals are free flowing even when stored in big bags for longer periods of time and will also have a bright extrinsic color. Cocoa powder stabilization is a delicate process that needs to be carefully controlled. On an industrial scale cocoa powder is typically supplied in 50 pound bags or 1 ton ‘big bags’ to bakeries, ice cream makers, chocolate makers, confectioners, etc.

Cocoa Powder Milling and Stabilization

The ICM cocoa powder mill is a continuous system taking the kibble from the press and refines it in the milling chamber. By using a frequency controlled classifier the mill controls the fineness of the powder existing the mill. The mill is not only capable of deglomeration of the kibble is is also able to refine the solid particles if necessary. the mill is build from extremely durable precision engineered materials ensuring extreme up-time benefits. The mill is also easy to clean and requires very little maintenance – all up-to-date- safety features complying with ATEX or NFPA requirements are available. the stabilization system will ensure the formation of ‘beta 5’ crystals in the remaining fat in the cocoa powder ensuring a free flowing powder (no agglomerates!) with a bright color even after long term storage in big bags