Natural all-rounder starch

Interview with sales engineer Manfred Kropp

The starch process is fundamentally very complex and costly. Everything has to work together from start to finish, as the process runs continuously – 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The range of applications is very wide: Starch is often used as a gelling and thickening agent in the food industry, but there are also a number of variations here, such as in baked goods, convenience products or sauces. The use also depends on whether the starch is native or modified. Native starch is untreated, while the modified type has been chemically and physically processed to achieve even more specific properties. There is also the technical starch that is used, for example, as an additive in the paper industry. Starch is also often used in many chemical products, such as paints and adhesives. Another application of starch is in the oil industry: For drilling fluids, starch is used to make the flushing water more viscous.

The starch process is fundamentally very complex and costly. Everything has to work together from start to finish, as the process runs continuously – 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is therefore absolutely essential that all individual process steps are perfectly coordinated to avoid disruptions. In addition, starch production is a wet process that inevitably requires a lot of fresh water. Of course, manufacturers take care to minimize the use of water, in order to save costs and produce as little wastewater as possible. Process water can be reused, and is an important consideration toward saving fresh water. Another challenge in the starch process is to obtain the highest possible yield. The individual separation steps must work together optimally, otherwise there is a loss of product and reduced starch yield.