Difference between dry pet food and wet pet food

Puffed dog food refers to a pet food produced by a puffing process in many foods provided for pets.

pet extruder

The significance of the dog food expansion process

The processing of dog food mainly refers to the use of various means and methods to shape a variety of raw materials or a single raw material, so as to maximize the nutrition, palatability and digestion and absorption of pets, in order to maximize the potential nutritional value and The process of using value.

Pet food dog food has a wide range of processing, including pet snack foods, snacks, tooth sticks, bones, bones, nutrients (liquid), concentrated dog food powder, dry food, wet food, semi-dry food, canned food, etc. . In order to maximize the nutritional function, different raw materials are processed in different forms.

The processing of puffed dog food is basically divided into three categories: physical method, chemical method and microbial method. Physical method mainly refers to extrusion, heating, pulverization and bonding of raw materials; chemical method is to denature starch and protein degradation; Microbial law refers to the fermentation of certain raw materials. Here is a brief introduction to the puffing process in the physical method:

First of all, let's take a look at the concept of puffing in the processing of dog food. Puffing is a food processing method. It puts the processed food into a closed container, and suddenly decompresses after heating and pressing, and the water vaporizes and expands in the food. Many small holes appear in the food and become crispy and become puffed food. The basic principle is to let the raw material suddenly decompress and expand under heating and pressure.

As a new type of food processing technology, puffing technology began in 1910. It was applied in pet food in the United States in the 1950s. The United States first used the extrusion principle to produce pet food, that is, using the extruder. The screw and the screw sleeve are heated and pressurized by pressing the raw material, and the high-temperature and high-pressure food is extruded into the mold cavity, and the process of rapidly expanding the volume is realized by sudden decompression.

pet food

In the wet puffing process of dog food, pre-tempering technology has very important significance:

1. Improve the capacity of puffing and granulating. Pre-heating and reacting the raw materials with steam through pre-heating, the raw materials are softened, which is more conducive to molding, and reduces the wear of raw materials on machinery;

2. through the pre-modulation technology to increase the bulk density of the particles, reduce the dust rate, reduce the loss of dog food processing and maintain the hygiene of the production environment;

3. Promote starch gelatinization and protein denaturation, and improve the digestion and absorption of food by pets. According to the data, when steam conditioning, the gelatinization rate of starch can reach 35%~45% without pre-conditioning of steam. The starch gelatinization rate is only 15%;

4. more thorough killing of harmful bacteria, high temperature steam can kill most of E. coli and Salmonella during the pre-tempering process, greatly improving the safety and hygiene standards of pet food dog food;

5. Through the quenching and tempering technology, it is convenient to add the liquid nutrient raw material, and improve and increase the nutrition of the pet food;

At the same time, the wet puffing method also has the advantages of good puffing and granulating effect, stable puffing rate, etc. In the processing of dog food, the wet puffing method and pre-tempering technology have a very important role and significance. However, compared with the dry puffing method, it has the defects of expensive equipment, high equipment requirements, and cumbersome equipment control.

According to the method of quenching and tempering, that is, the dry puffing method and the wet puffing method mentioned above, according to the screw structure of the puffing equipment, it can be divided into a single screw extrusion puffing method and a twin screw extrusion puffing method. Kind.

The expansion process of the single-screw extrusion method is relatively simple, and the application range is quite wide. It can be used for products with high moisture content and fat content of more than 17%, and the starch gelatinization degree can reach more than 90%.

Compared with the single-screw extrusion method, the twin-screw extrusion method has relatively complicated equipment and structure, but has the advantages of stable puffing performance, high product yield, high production efficiency, and basically aseptic product after puffing.

In the processing technology of pet food dog food, the extrusion process has been widely used in recent years. Especially after the 1980s, it has developed rapidly in the dry food, semi-dry food and pet snack food of pets. The process has made great changes to the palatability, nutrition, digestion and absorption, health and safety, transportation and storage of pet food, which has a positive significance.

The main purpose of the manufacturing method of dog food using the puffing process is:

1. Improve the palatability of pet food;

2. Change or improve the nutritional value of pet food;

3. Improve the digestion and absorption rate of pets on food;

4. Change the shape and structure of the pet food to make it easy for pets to eat;

5. change the content of different nutritional indicators of pet food, such as: reduce the water to improve the shelf life of food, is conducive to storage;

6. Change the bulk density of the food, and squeeze the granules and the briquettes to increase the bulk density of the food;

7. Kill all kinds of harmful substances such as mold and salmonella, and improve the safety and hygiene of pet food;

Based on the above purposes, we will analyze and compare two different puffing methods in the dog grain expansion process. The screw extrusion can be divided into two types, one is dry puffing and the second is wet puffing. law.

Dry puffing needs to add moisture to the raw materials in the production process. The raw materials are not pre-tempered before entering the puffing chamber. The heat generated during the puffing process is all passed by the screw and shear plate under the action of mechanical extrusion. And produced in the expansion chamber.

The difference between the wet puffing method and the dry puffing method is that the raw material is prepared in advance before entering the puffing, and the temperature is raised by steam or water to be pre-cooked. The so-called quenching and tempering refers to the hot and humid action of the pet food raw materials by steam, so that the starch in the raw material is pre-gelatinized, the protein is denatured, and the raw material is softened, thereby improving the puffing granulation effect and improving the puffing quality of the dog food.