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Industrial dryer for herbal tea production industry: Solution to upgrade modern processing process
The herbal tea industry is growing, especially as consumers become more health conscious and increasingly use natural products. However, many manufacturers are still facing difficulties in the drying stage – the stage that determines the quality, aroma and color of the tea.
Sun drying or manual drying often does not ensure uniformity, easily loses medicinal properties, not to mention depends a lot on the weather. This is when industrial dryers for the herbal tea production industry become a necessary solution to upgrade the process, increase productivity and create products of higher standards.
So which type of machine is suitable? How much investment is reasonable? Let’s explore in the content below!
MỤC LỤC
Why is it necessary to upgrade drying technology in the herbal tea industry?
In the herbal tea production chain, the drying stage plays a key role, directly affecting the quality of the product – from color, aroma to the ability to retain medicinal properties. However, many facilities still use manual drying methods such as sun drying or wood drying, which cannot control the temperature, easily losing valuable active ingredients and causing changes in natural color.
In addition, manual drying also depends on the weather, making the product susceptible to mold, uneven, and difficult to meet food safety and traceability standards – especially for export markets. This model is also labor-intensive and unsuitable when output increases.
Faced with increasingly stringent demands on quality and output, investing in industrial dryers for the herbal tea industry is an inevitable step. This is not only a technical solution but also a strategy to improve production capacity, standardize processes and increase competitiveness in the market.
Industrial dryer – Optimal solution for herbal tea production
Nowadays, many herbal tea production facilities are gradually switching to using industrial dryers because of the obvious benefits that this equipment brings. Previously, when drying by sun drying or using heat from a wood stove, it was difficult to control the temperature and humidity. This easily caused discoloration, loss of aroma or loss of valuable active ingredients in herbs.
But with industrial dryers, everything is pre-set – from temperature, time to wind direction – to help the ingredients dry evenly, retain their natural color and medicinal properties. Not only that, using the machine also helps save effort and time. You don’t need to monitor and stir by hand continuously like before.
A batch can dry several hundred kilograms to several tons, depending on the machine’s capacity, very suitable for those who are producing in large quantities or have expansion plans. In particular, industrial dryers can also be applied to many different types of raw materials such as leaves, flowers, stems, tubers, etc., so you can easily diversify your products while still controlling the output quality.
Industrial dryers not only help dry faster and cleaner, but also create batches of herbal tea that are of higher quality, more beautiful and easier to sell – especially when you want to bring the product to supermarkets, do OCOP or export abroad.
Suitable drying technologies in the herbal tea industry
3D Convection Air Dryer
Food heat pump dryer is the most commonly used type of dryer in medium and large production facilities. The machine operates by passing hot air through the raw materials from multiple directions (left, right, up, down), combined with a wind reversal system to help dry more evenly, avoiding the phenomenon of dry and wet areas.
- Advantage:
- Fast drying speed
- Simple operation
- Reasonable price
- Suitable for large production
- Applications: Ginger tea, lemongrass tea, guava leaf tea, phyllanthus urinaria tea…
- Note: The temperature is usually between 40–80°C, and needs to be adjusted appropriately to avoid losing medicinal properties for sensitive species.
Freeze dryer
Freeze dryers use lowtemperature (25–50°C) dry air, which is very suitable for herbs that need to retain beautiful color, natural aroma and volatile active ingredients.
- Advantage:
- Maximum preservation of flavor, color and medicinal properties
- High value finished products
- Does not deform raw materials
- Applications: Chrysanthemum tea, lotus tea, ginseng tea, artichoke tea, yellow flower tea…
- Note: Drying time is longer than heat drying, initial investment cost is higher, suitable for high-end products.
Freeze Dryer
Freeze drying is the most advanced drying technology today, using the principle of deep freezing and then vacuuming to transfer water in the raw material from solid to vapor, skipping the liquid stage. Thanks to that, the shape, color and nutrients of the product are almost 100% preserved.
- Advantage:
- Outstanding product quality
- Dry, crispy, light, easy to pack
- Suitable for high-end export products
- Application: High-class ginseng tea, cordyceps tea, functional food tea
- Note: High machine price, complicated operating process, suitable for businesses with special product orientation.
Tips for choosing industrial dryers for herbal tea establishments
To choose the right industrial dryer for your herbal tea production facility, you need to start with the raw materials you are processing. For thin leaves and flowers such as chrysanthemum tea, lotus tea or artichoke tea, you should prioritize the cold dryer to preserve the color, aroma and medicinal properties.
If you mainly dry ginger, lemongrass, phyllanthus urinaria or sliced stems and roots, the 3D convection dryer will be a reasonable choice in terms of efficiency and cost. In case you are aiming for the high-end segment such as ginseng tea or functional food tea, the freeze dryer is the ideal solution – although the initial investment cost is high, the finished product has superior quality.
In addition, you also need to clearly determine the production scale to choose the appropriate machine capacity. For small facilities, a dryer of 100-300kg/batch is enough, while large-scale factories may need a machine of 1-2 tons/batch. It is important that the machine has a smart, easy-to-use control panel that can save drying formulas for each type of raw material.
At the same time, prioritize machines made from 304 stainless steel, with good insulation and easily replaceable components to ensure durability and food hygiene. You should choose a reputable supplier – with on-site technical support, clear warranty and practical experience in the herbal drying industry. These factors will help you not only operate the machine effectively, but also develop sustainably in the future.
Contact for quote and consultation
SUNSAY freeze dryer is a product researched and designed by engineers with more than 15 years of experience in Vietnam with the mission of improving the value of processing and preserving Vietnamese agricultural products as well as contributing to solving the problem of Post-processing accounting of Vietnam’s agricultural industry.
SUNSAY dryer offers a completely new solution that saves time, reduces investment costs for users, improves productivity, and brings high economic efficiency. With a reasonable price, SUNSAY Vietnam believes that this device is completely worth investing in and using for a long time to bring the most optimal results.
For detailed advice, please visit the website: kynghexanh.com.vn or immediately contact Hotline (Zalo): +84 935 995 035 or switchboard number: +84 94 110 8888 for support.