Addressing Hidden Losses in the Dairy Industry: Collo’s Innovative Approach

Invisible losses are gradually infiltrating the dairy industry, with inefficiencies largely obscured within the processing pipes. In Europe alone, there are approximately 12,000 dairies that collectively generate around 160 million tons of raw milk each year. Alarmingly, about 4% of that milk is wasted due to these inefficiencies in liquid processing.

Collo’s Solution: Advanced Liquid Process Intelligence

Finnish company Collo aims to tackle this issue head-on with an innovative instrument tailored for liquid process intelligence. The cornerstone of their technology is an advanced sensor system designed to continuously monitor liquid properties in real time.

How It Works

Collo’s electromagnetic field resonators are inserted into the pipes of processing facilities, generating radio frequencies within the liquid. This technology enhances quality and process control, potentially saving beverage companies, from dairies to major bottlers, billions of dollars, claims Collo CEO Jani Puroranta.

“You can basically start saving money from day one.”

Interview Insights: Collo’s Background and Vision

In a recent conversation with AgFunderNews, CEO Jani Puroranta shared insights into Collo’s journey. The company originated as a scientific project at Tampere University nearly a decade ago, focusing on the fluid process challenges faced by several large organizations.

Puroranta explained that historical instruments were marred by issues of fouling, limited universality, and significant maintenance needs. The breakthrough was the development of a resilient instrument aimed at resolving these very problems.

Cost and Environmental Impact

With an average of 4% milk wastage across European dairies, even a modest reduction of this figure to 3% could result in nearly $1 billion in savings. Moreover, addressing this wastage also means less environmental burden, as 6.5 million tons of milk waste produces significant CO2 emissions.

Applicability Beyond Dairy

While Collo’s technology is optimized for the dairy sector, its universal applicability spans all beverage companies facing similar challenges. Notably, Coca-Cola reports consuming 1.78 liters of water for every liter of soda produced, showcasing the industry-wide struggle for efficiency.

Distinctive Technology Features

Collo’s technology sets itself apart from outdated instruments that rely on time-and-flow measurement or conductivity sensors, which often lack accuracy. Instead, Collo employs a radar-like approach, generating an electromagnetic field within the liquid, thus enhancing measurement accuracy significantly.

Key Use Cases

The primary applications of Collo’s technology include optimizing the Clean-in-Place (CIP) process and minimizing product loss during product transition phases. Additionally, Collo’s advanced system enhances food safety by ensuring that no cleaning chemicals remain in the product flow.

Challenges and Future Prospects

Despite the promising technology, scaling poses challenges. Collo aims to address customer concerns about the technology’s applicability within their unique processes. Puroranta noted that once clients are introduced to the technology, they often envision multiple applications, making it challenging to maintain focus.

Looking forward, Collo’s immediate goal is to expand across food and beverage companies, particularly in Europe, with ongoing discussions with major clients already in the pipeline.

“We’re really on a growth journey,” stated Puroranta. “We’ve focused the past few years on developing the technology for the food and beverage sector, and now we are gearing up for scalability.”