Complete olive oil production at the Californian family-run company Lucero
If we travel around the world and visit an olive oil mill, the feeling is always the same, whether in an olive oil country in the Mediterranean region with a centuries-old tradition or in one of the “new” olive oil producing countries. “Our olive oil is the best in the world”, oil mill operators and olive farmers say with one voice throughout the world.
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The specific aroma of these oil mills throughout the world is equivalent to that encountered in winemaking operations. Each develops its own aroma. And when we open a bottle of Chardonnay, Riesling or Cabernet Sauvignon, we release the aroma, which is the scent of the winemaking operation. And the situation with olive oil is exactly the same. Every olive mill has its own aroma.
One of these oil mills, which justifiably celebrates its products with a great deal of pride and selfconfidence, is Lucero, a family-run operation in the Californian Sacramento valley, which is now managed by the fourth generation olive grower Dewey Lucero and his wife Katie. The Luceros are, of course, members of the Slow Food Community, and devote their entire personal commitment and enthusiasm to the processing and marketing of their olives and olive oils. Lucero has repeatedly received significant top honors and prestigious awards for the quality of their products. In the past five years alone, Lucero olive oils have received more than 66 medals and awards. Quality is their absolute priority.
Improved malaxation concept
Accordingly, GEA Westfalia Separator was allowed to install a complete oil production system for the Californian olive oil mill; this operation commenced at the end of 2008. It comprises all stations from the point at which the olives are received, the cleaning and washing facility, and then the process of crushing the olives in a mill. The task of the subsequent malaxation process is to create heat conditions in which the enzymes in the olives soften the cell walls, to agitate the mass in such a way that the cells are broken down and then to ensure that the droplets of oil which are released form a continuous phase. A fundamental principle is that longer malaxation times increase the number of aroma components, which are reduced. This means that the malaxation concept has to be implemented in such a way that these procedure stages can be carried out in a short period of time and for specific types.
For the malaxation stage, GEA Westfalia Separator has therefore for the first time implemented an improved and holistic heating concept which considerably improves the process of transferring energy into the mash and which operates very efficiently. This reduces the malaxation times and further increases the yields. Since this new installation has been commissioned, Lucero has been experiencing an increase in supply from their olive grower suppliers who of course welcome the increase in yield and praise the further improvement in the quality of the oils.
Westfalia Separator® cetec decanters for high yields
The actual process of separating the olive oil takes place in a 2-phase decanter. With the 2-phase system, GEA Westfalia Separator has developed a procedure, which separates the mash into oil, pomace and water, which functions without the addition of water and which produces correspondingly lower levels of effluent. With the patented Westfalia Separator® cetec scroll, this procedure achieves high yields.
Alternatively, many mills are still working with the 3-phase system. With this 3-phase technology, the olive mash is diluted with water in order to reduce the viscosity. The decanter separates the mash into the valuable oil phase, effluent which contains coarse particles as well as the pomace. Which is an economic and continuous procedure.
Highly-efficient separator used as oil polisher
Lucero uses a separator as an oil polisher downstream of the decanter process. This separator does not require much water, produces only low losses, is self-cleaning and provides a further noticeable improvement in the quality of the olive oil. The self-cleaning function is crucial in this respect. The bowl must open and close for this purpose. It is extremely important in this respect that these opening times are extremely short in order to ensure that no oil is able to escape and that no oil can be lost with the sludge discharge. It is also necessary for the volume of polishing water to be minimised so as not to wash out the oil. It is of course self-evident that only an extremely efficient separator meets these technological requirements.
Olive oil - a wonderful product of nature
In the final analysis, the yield is the most important parameter in olive oil production; of course, in conjunction with the need to maintain quality and the necessary storage stability. A further crucial factor for the process is its stability in conjunction with different raw materials with which the oil mills have to live with. This is because the olive is a natural product and is not a synthetic artefact. GEA Westfalia Separator is well known for its performance in meeting these criteria; the yield of the processes is excellent, the stability of the processes is high and the oil quality, which is obtained, is recognised to be extremely high; all of these features are achieved in conjunction with good value for money. However, even the best knowledge is not worth anything, if it is not implemented.
And such implementation can only be achieved in conjunction with the customer, for instance Lucero in this case. With the same fascination in which every oil mill operator loves his product: “Our olive oil is the best in the world”.
Combination scroll for the 2-phase as well as the 3-phase method
For users who for specific reasons wish to utilize the 2-phase method as well as the 3-phase method, GEA Westfalia Separator has also designed a combination scroll with which both technologies can be operated alternately. Only approximately one hour is required for changing this special scroll. And there are also no changes in the yield or flow compared with a purely 2-phase or 3-phase scroll.
Photos (except machines): Lucero Olive Oil, LLC