FADEL sets up a model poultry processing plant in Argentina with the support of ULMA Packaging
Established in 2004 by a small group of businesspeople who joined forces to set up a production project, FADEL is one of the largest poultry producers in Argentina. In 2007 it added a balanced feed processing plant to store raw materials and subsequently process them to provide nutrition for the pig farm; it also embarked on a new activity, the breeding of broiler chickens (extremely large chickens that weigh more than 3 kg) through an integrated system.
It started up its own abattoir in Pronunciamiento (Argentina) and with the intention of innovating the way it presents chopped chicken, it added three ULMA Packaging VTI 640 IP 66 vertical machines that are equipped to meet the strictest requirements in terms of operating conditions for the IQF packaging of chopped chicken, both in laminated film and LDPE, enabling an output of 7,200 packs per hour. The installation was designed with two spiral freezers and three lines composed of Marel multihead weighers and three ULMA VTI 640 IP 66 vertical machines.
The presentation formats chosen by FADEL are 2.5 kg packs for hindquarters and 1.5 kg and 3 kg packs; 5 kg for chicken breasts, 3 kg for chicken thighs and legs and 1.5 kg for chicken breast centre cuts. IQF or Individual Quick Freezing products are becoming increasingly popular among manufacturers of frozen foods because this procedure ensures that the product maintains all of its texture, nutritional value and flavour when it is defrosted. It also means that the products do not require any additional barrier or preservatives and, due to the sudden temperature change, the presence of microorganisms is significantly reduced.
Because of the needs at the time, they had to be installed in very humid working conditions, ensuring that they were able to work with different film materials while also requiring a continuous and highly efficient reduction in cubic capacity. For this purpose, a simple layout was defined, where each need was meet with a suitable solution (see video). The customer entrusted this installation to ULMA Packaging because it is the leading company in this industry in Latin America, with over 20 installations in various BRF plants. And also because it is the best option in Argentina for high-quality equipment, with its own local technical service.
ULMA Packaging has become a leader in comprehensive packaging solutions in Argentina's food industry, with this being its third IQF project and its seventh installation of packaging systems in the country's poultry sector. FADEL will continue to opt for ULMA Packaging as the supplier of machines for its future investments and process improvements.
In this project all of the objectives that were set were successfully met; FADEL is a model poultry processing plant for IQF in Argentina and the plant has now set the standard for all poultry producers in Argentina. The customer's satisfaction with this installation adds yet another success to the long list of projects carried out by ULMA Packaging.
