Water treatment in food industry

The author considered the contemporary state of the issue of water treatment in food and beverages production. The article presents regulated water quality parameters for drinking and bottled water, for dairy industry, beer and soft drinks production, as well as for production of vodka, vodka for export, and baby food. The article shows that water from central utility and drinking water supply needs additional treatment to produce food and beverages. It should be cleaned from hardness salts, iron, manganese, mineral salts, organic compounds and microbial contamination. Besides, many companies use groundwater sources (from wells). That makes water treatment procedure even more complicated. The author considered such treatment methods as ion exchange, magnetic water treatment, catalyzed oxidation, deferrization using sorption-filtering materials from mineral raw materials, aeration, reverse osmosis, electrodialysis, activated carbon adsorption. The author shows the treatment mechanisms, their advantages and disadvantages. The article indicates which materials and equipment can be used to apply these methods in water treatment practice. It describes new techniques for effective water treatment such as radiolysis, cavitation and advanced oxidation treatment techniques. It gives flow diagram of bottled water production depending on its origin and content of impurities which is used by the companies working in Gelendzhiksky district, Lipetsk and Kemerovo. The author analyzed the contemporary state of the issue of water treatment in food and beverages production companies based on the available information and assessed the technical level of water treatment systems. The article reveals that only companies which produce alcoholic drinks such as vodka, liquors, and beer use a number of water treatment procedures which meet modern requirements. In general, food production companies face water treatment issue. Labor intensive, expensive and non-environmentally friendly water treatment methods are used everywhere. But they do not always guarantee required water quality. For that reason water treatment schemes in food industry should be revised. The author gives recommendations to replace traditional technologies with modern ones.