The Ardo Group is a major player in the Belgian food industry, with an international reach. The group sources its produce from 3,500 farmers in 10 European countries. All Ardo products, especially frozen vegetables, are grown with the greatest respect for nature and the environment.
To expand its production capacity, the Ardo Group has just purchased two new Tomra sorting machines for its Ardooie site.
The Tomra industrial group has been a partner of Ardo for 15 years, and the production line at the Ardooie site (Belgium) has just added two new TOMRA optical sorting machines.
The Ardo Group is known for its stringent quality control standards.
Every day, tons of carrots are unloaded from the fields onto the production lines. De-sanded and washed several times, they also have to be cleaned of all impurities. Foreign matter is removed step by step: first, the stones are removed, then a flotation tank retains floating particles; finally, a conveyor removes the tops.
TOMRA’s Sentinel II optical sorting machines then intervene on the production line, identifying any remaining foreign matter, including potato pieces, plastic debris, corn cobs…
“Anything not specifically recognized and authorized is immediately ejected. It’s only after this final stage that the product flow passes through the sizers, then the cutting machines, before finally shipping the prepared and packaged orders to our customers in the 4 corners of the world”, explains GILLIS ALLIET, Production Line Manager at Ardo.
“The new TOMRA sorting equipment delivers on all its promises. It provides absolutely reliable ultimate sorting. It removes all impurities, down to the smallest roots and twigs. Ardo can really assure its customers that it does everything necessary for food safety”, adds GILLIS ALLIET.
“The output is intense, on the order of 30 tonnes per hour. No human eye will ever be able to match the performance of the TOMRA machine, with endurance and unwavering vigilance all the way through, as the machine does,” explains GILLIS ALLIET.
In terms of operating safety, the design of the tool is impeccable and prevents any work-related accidents.
Last but not least, the numerical control screen makes setting up easy. The interface is easy to understand and master and operators can access control indicators at any time and act remotely. “It’s as simple as a smartphone app, it looks like a gadget, but it’s very powerful”, explains GILLIS ALLIET.
In figures, the Ardo Group, with sales of USD 1.5 billion and 5,000 employees, is Europe’s leading producer of freshly frozen vegetables, herbs and fruit.
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