By XAVIER SMERDON
THE snacks and cereals of the future are being created in a lab in Werribee thanks to a new piece of technology.
The doors of the CSIRO Food Processing Centre in Werribee were open for a rare viewing of a new $600,000 extruder.
The extruder is basically a machine that injects raw ingredients with steam and then forces them through a small hole after they have puffed up to the desired size before they are cut to the perfect length.
This process is used to make everything from cereals and twisties to animal feed pellets.
Factory Manager Rod Smith said the extruder was the only one of its kind available for research uses in Australia.
“This is news for the Australian food industry and it will be a real resource for the industry,” Mr Smith said.
“This is the first one in a public research environment where industries can come along to develop their products.”
Mr Smith said the machine would allow scientists to test different kinds of food and see what can be done to make them healthier.
“Making healthier foods is the key,” he said.
“Eighty per cent of our diet is processed foods and we’ve got to look at making them healthier.
“Knowing how food is structured can help us work out ways of reducing things like salt and fat.”
The extruder was only on display for industry insiders for one day last week but Mr Smith said every member of the community would benefit from its work.
“A lot of the work we do is confidential because businesses are involved,” he said.
“We all touch something every day that is made by an extruder whether it is snacks, cereals or foods that feed the animals that humans then eat.”
A complex lab full of scientists also works in the background to make the new technology as efficient as possible.
