An Ice Cream Packaging Machine- The Price and Purchase

One of the most consumed dairy products known as the best-selling snack worldwide is ice cream. Many industries specialize in the production and packaging of ice cream with different flavors and packaging. Since ice cream is a member of the dairy products, extreme care must be taken in its production, packaging, and distribution to reach the consumer without any problems. Ice cream packaging machines are available industrially and domestically, and industrial machines are divided into three categories based on the level of automation: manual, automatic, and semi-automatic.

West Asia Steel Company has been manufacturing industrial and home packaging machines for years. One of the machines manufactured by this company is the ice cream packaging machine, which we will explain its working methods, stages, features, and advantages.

Important Reasons for Packaging Ice Cream

The most important point before introducing products to the market is appropriate packaging. Alongside facilitating easier transportation and observing hygiene standards, proper packaging also helps preserve the quality and appearance of the product. As you may know, ice cream is recognized as one of the foodstuffs by high degree of spoilage, so paying attention to its packaging is crucial. Number of the most significant reasons for ice cream packaging include:

1. Food preservation: Proper packaging of ice cream protects it from moisture loss, temperature increase, and contamination, preserving its quality, properties, and taste during transportation and storage.
2. Protection against biological factors: Packaging protects ice cream from microbes, bacteria, and other biological agents.
3. Labeling information: After packaging, essential product information such as brand name, expiration date, storage method, and ingredients is displayed on the product label, providing useful information to customers about the nutritional content, calorie count, etc.
4. Easier usage: Ice cream packaging makes storage and usage more convenient. Ice creams packaged in cups or plastic trays are easy to serve and store, allowing customers to keep and use them easily as needed.
5. Transportation convenience: Packaging ice cream in plastic wraps and containers facilitates its easy transportation. Improper packaging can lead to leakage due to melting during transit.
6. Product attractiveness for marketing: Packaging can be considered as elegant, luxurious, and efficient clothing for the product. Appealing and attractive packaging contributes significantly to increased sales. Since children often lead the way in buying ice cream, attention to packaging appearance, color, and distinctiveness attracts them. Therefore, packaging is one of the influential factors in increasing company profits. Using West Steel Asia's tray sealer packaging machines, there are no limitations on the shape and dimensions of the chosen container by the manufacturer, allowing for the use of containers with unique shapes.

What are the Characteristics of Good Ice Cream Packaging?

Good ice cream packaging should have the following features:

• Product Information: One of the key considerations for consumers when choosing food products is paying attention to the product label. This label contains important information such as the product name, production date, expiration date, storage conditions, calorie content, health certification, etc. Mentioning this information on the product instills more confidence in the buyer and increases the sales and profits of the manufacturing company.
• Observing sanitary: Nowadays, hygiene compliance has become very important to consumers. Paying attention to hygiene factors in the packaging of food products is crucial, and failure to observing it in ice cream packaging reduces product sales.
• Leak-proof: Ice cream packaging should use materials and methods that prevent leakage. Since ice cream melts due to its appearance when subjected to impact, pressure, and exposure to high temperatures, attention to this issue in its packaging is very important. With the packaging of the product by West Asia steel tray sealer machines, ensure the absence of leakage in your products.
• Sufficient Strength: Since applying pressure to ice cream causes it to change state and melt, the strength of the packaging is very important. The packaging should be strong enough to withstand the pressure from impacts during transportation, loading, and unloading without changing shape and causing the contents to be lost. Therefore, with packaging inside firm and high-strength trays, deformation will not occur.
• High-Quality Packaging Materials: The use of inexpensive materials in packaging causes a reaction between the food and the packaging material. This leads to food spoilage and food poisoning. Therefore, packaging materials should be hygienic and non-toxic, and they should not affect the quality of the food inside the packaging.
• Quality Guarantee: Food packaging should be in a way that protects the packaging from air or moisture penetration.
• Efficient Packaging: Efficient packaging prevents food and materials used in packaging from being wasted.
• Recyclability of Packaging: Environmental compatibility of packaging is one of the key factors considered by environmental organizations. Therefore, attention to environmental factors in the production of ice cream packaging increases product sales and attracts more nature lovers. Also, mentioning the recycling method of materials used in packaging is also beneficial.

Materials Used for Ice Cream Packaging   

The following materials are used for packaging ice cream:

1. Plastic Trays (Polyethylene and others): Plastic trays made of polyethylene with high density are a good choice for packaging tray and lid. This material is highly flexible, resistant to impact, and strong, and can withstand low temperatures. Additionally, the lightweight nature of this product facilitates easy handling. Plastic trays made of other materials such as polypropylene (PP) are also suitable for ice cream packaging. These containers have the capability to be sealed with various types of aluminum, metallized, and plastic films, making them very practical for single-serve or bulk packaging.
2. Shelly and Polyethylene Films: For packaging by shelly films, a layer of printed OPP or BOPP with a shelly-based color is used on the outside, and transparent polyethylene films with higher thickness are laminated on the inside. However, milky polyethylene film samples are produced in a two-layer form, with one layer of bopet polyester film and one layer of milky polyethylene film used on the inside.
3. Nylon (LDPE) Raw Materials: Kilogram ice creams are packaged inside packaging boxes, and a layer of transparent plastic is placed around them. The transparent plastic around the ice cream is made of LDPE nylon, which is the best choice for direct contact with food in terms of hygiene.
4. OPP-BOPP-CPP Films: For packaging frozen ice cream, these films or single-layer films such as (OPP-BOPP-CPP) or other polymer materials such as polyethylene are used. These types of films are more cost-effective and are used due to the low price of ice cream.
5. Metallized Films: Laminated metallized films or foils increase the shelf life of the product and prevent light or other external factors from entering the packaging.

Types of Ice Cream Packaging Machinery and Auxiliary Equipment

Packaging machinery and auxiliary equipment used for ice cream packaging vary depending on the level of automation and whether the process is for retail or industrial purposes. These machines include:

1. Semi-automatic tray sealer (seal vacuum)
2. Automatic tray sealer (seal vacuum)
3. Pillow pack machine
4. Manual sealing machine
5. Thermoforming machine
6. Automatic denester
7. Piston cylinder filler
8. Multi-head filler
9. Metal detector
10. Weight control systems (check weighers)
11. Automatic rower
12. Jet printer
13. UV tunnel
14. Traffic table
15. Horizontal sealing machine

Tray Sealer Packaging Machines

Tray sealer packaging machines are used for packaging food products. These machines come in three forms: automatic, semi-automatic, and manual, for packaging products. Various types of tray sealer machines are introduced below:

Automatic Tray Sealer Packaging Machine

Automatic packaging of ice cream is done using the automatic tray sealer machine. The process of ice cream packaging using this machine is explained below:

• Plastic trays are placed manually or automatically (by the aid of automatic denester) on the machine.
• Then, the filling machines (piston cylinder filler) pour the ice cream into the trays.
• In this stage, the trays containing ice cream are guided into the mold of the machine via a conveyor.
• Based on preset settings, the machine proceeds to vacuum and sealing the packaging trays.
• The automatic rower arranges the trays so that information can be printed on the packaging using a jet printer.
• Finally, the packaged products are directed towards the traffic table.Top of Form

Features of the Automatic Tray Sealer Machine

One of the products manufactured by West Asia Steel Company is the automatic tray sealing machine. Due to its numerous features, this machine has attracted the attention of manufacturers. These features include the following:

• Easy setup and adjustments.
• Ability to adjust packaging for trays by different sizes.
• Capability for vacuum or non-vacuum packaging.
• Flexibility to change packaging options according to customer preferences and needs.
• Capability to perform packaging using various methods such as modified atmosphere packaging and vacuuming.
• Capability to package various products including dry foods, dates, ready-to-eat cold foods, pickles (such as pickles cucumber and olives) and pickled vegetables, various meat and protein products, fruits, various salads, dairy products, bread, and confectionery.

Semi-Automatic Tray Sealer

Another machine used for packaging ice cream is the semi-automatic tray sealer. This machine is suitable for producing products by small to medium capacity. The packaging process in this machine is as follows:

• Plastic trays are manually filled by the operator.
• The filled trays are then manually placed onto the machine's mold.
• The machine table is rotated by the operator.
• The machine starts working based on pre-set settings to vacuuming the packaging trays.
• The table is rotated again by the operator.
• Finally, the packaged trays are moved upwards out of the mold by the ejection system.

Features of Semi-Automatic Tray Sealer

The semi-automatic tray sealer packaging machine has many features, which are listed below:

• Easy setup and adjustments.
• Affordable price.
• Suitable for packaging small to medium capacities.
• Requires small space for installation.
• Packaging options can be adjusted and customized according to customer preferences and needs.
• Capable of packaging using various methods such as modified atmosphere packaging.
• Capability to package various products including dry foods, dates, ready-to-eat cold foods, pickles (such as pickles cucumber and olives) and pickled vegetables, various meat and protein products, fruits, various salads, dairy products, bread, confectionery and even medical devices.Top of Form

Study more about the semi-automatic tray sealer machine.

Thermoforming Packaging Machine

A thermoforming packaging machine is used for packaging food and pharmaceutical products. Unlike tray sealers where the trays are pre-prepared for packaging, this machine has the capability to create trays. The packaging process in this machine is as follows:

• The film used for making trays is placed in the machine.
• The forming mold shapes the film, creating the packaging tray.
• The tray is cut in the cutting mold.
• The ice cream is poured into the trays.
• The trays are guided into the sealing mold by a conveyor.
• The machine performs the vacuum process.
• At this stage, sealing, cutting, and moving the packaged trays out of the mold are carried out by the machine.
• Finally, information is printed on the packaging using a jet printer.

Features of Thermoforming Packaging Machine

The thermoforming packaging machine by West Asia Steel has numerous features. Below are the features of this machine:

• Compatible with various trays and products.
• Easy cleaning.
• The body of the machine is made of stainless steel, resistant to corrosion and oxidation.
• Installation of various fillers on the machine is possible.
• The machine is equipped with fillers for both diluted and concentrated liquid as well as multi-head fillers.
• Installation of labelers and jet printers on the machine is possible.
• Packaging options can be changed according to customer requirements.
• This machine is capable of packaging various products including dry foods, dates, ready-to-eat cold foods, pickles (such as pickles cucumber and olives) and pickled vegetables, various meat and protein products, fruits, various salads, dairy products, bread, and confectionery, different cosmetic products and medical devices.

Pillow Packing Machine

The pillow packing machine operates fully automatically and is used for packaging foodstuff inside plastic or metallized bags. The packaging process in this machine includes:

• Placing the product on the conveyor by the operator.
• Wrapping the product with film using the machine.
• Sealing and cutting the product from three sides by the sealing and cutting jaws.
• Exiting the packaged product from the machine via the conveyor.
• Printing information using a jet printer.

Household Ice Cream Packaging Machines

One of the methods for packaging ice cream in small capacity is using a manual sealing machine. These machines are used for home use or small-scale supermarkets and have a more affordable price compared to industrial machines.

During the ice cream packaging process at home using a manual sealing machine, the prepared ice cream is poured into plastic trays. Then, the trays are placed inside the mold of the machine by the operator, the film is pulled over the tray, and by pulling the lever down, the product is packaged.

The manual sealing machines manufactured by West Asia Steel Company are suitable for producing products in small capacity. However, if you intend to produce in larger capacities, we recommend using our semi-automatic and automatic machines.

The Price of Ice Cream Packaging Machine

The prices of packaging machines from West Asia Steel Company vary depending on various factors. Factors that affect the price of packaging machines include:

• Type of machine preferred by the client.
• Level of automation of the machine (manual, automatic, semi-automatic).
• Production capacity (higher production capacities require machines with more equipment).
• Auxiliary equipment used in the machine (according to customer preferences).
• Dimensions of the customer's trays.
• Customization of the machine.

Therefore, if you intend to purchase products from West Asia Steel Company, contact our experts to inquire about the prices of the machines and benefit from their guidance.

Buying the Best Packaging Machine

As you may know, West Asia Steel is one of the leading manufacturers of packaging machines, active in this field for years. They have designed various packaging machines with efficient auxiliary equipment tailored to the needs of customers. The company's goal is to manufacture qualified and up-to-date products to satisfy its valued customers. Therefore, if you intend to purchase an ice cream packaging machine, visit our website to familiarize yourself with the company's products. Additionally, our experts at West Asia Steel are ready to provide consultation and guidance. So, before making any decisions, contact us and benefit from the expertise of our technical and specialist department.   

References

icecreammachinechina.com
technologia-group.com
basu.org.in
honokage.com

packenpack.com

With the support of more than ۲۲ years of experience in the packaging machinery industry, West Asia Steel is specialized in the field of designing and manufacturing all kinds of trisealer packaging machines.