METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION OF DRIED COLLAGEN

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of producing dried fibrous collagen which comprises subjecting pieces of material rich in collagen to drying under variable drying conditions, wherein, initially, said material is subjected to drying in a first stream of heated gas maintained at a temperature of less than about 60 DEG C and subsequently exposing the resulting partially dried material to a second heated gas stream at a temperature which is higher than said first stream, the temperatures and treatment times during said drying being controlled to minimise discolouration and hydrolysis of the dried product and then milling the dried collagen to form a fibrous product.

Description: METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION OF DRIED COLLAGEN This invention relates to the production of dried collagen from animal products and its utilization in reconstitution of meat. In PCT patent application FCT/GB90/00344 (WO90/10393) there is described a method of reconstituting meat by incorporation of added dried collagen fibres. It was found that fibrous collagen was superior to particles of collagen in inducing development of enhanced texture in mechanically recovered meat. One problem encountered in the production of textured meat in accordance with our above application is that dried collagen often contains a large proportion of particulate, non-fibrous material or material in which the fibrous character is not fully developed. Another problem is that collagen tends to be hydrolysed to gelatin or degraded if drying conditions are too severe. It is therefore one object of this invention to provide an improved method of obtaining fibrous collagen. The present invention is based on the discovery that collagen having a highly developed fibrous character is obtained by contacting pieces of collagen-containing material with a stream of heated gas under varying drying conditions in which the drying rate is controlled to a maximum gas temperature of about 60°C initially, until the water content has reduced to about half of its original content, e.g. about 30% to 35% by weight or less, and the drying conditions are then changed by increasing the gas temperature and drying continued until the desired final moisture content is reached. According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of producing dried fibrous collagen which comprises subjecting pieces of material rich in collagen to drying under variable drying conditions, wherein, initially, said material is subjected to drying in a first stream of heated gas maintained at a temperature of less than about 60°C and subsequently exposing the resulting partially dried material to a second heated gas stream at a temperature which is higher than said first stream, the temperatures and treatment times during said drying being controlled to minimise discolouration and hydrolysis of the dried product and then milling the dried collagen to form a fibrous product. The maximum permissible temperature of the heated gas during the initial drying depends on the water content of the collagen-rich feedstock. In the case where the water content is relatively low, e.g. in the case of tendons, the initial temperature may be close to 60°C. However, the preferred feedstock is split hides, which have a high water content, usually in the range of 70 to 80%. When employing feedstock having a water content of this order, the initial gas temperature should be below 55°c and preferably below 50°C. There are, essentially, two undesired reactions which are to be avoided in the drying process of this invention, the first is hydrolysis and the second is oxidation. Hydrolysis causes the conversion of collagen within the feedstock to gelatin. Hydrolysis of collagen will proceed more rapidly at higher temperatures. The rate of reaction also depends on the water- content of the collagen material; proceeding faster at higher water contents. Further, the rate of reaction is sensitive to the pH value of the water associated with the collagen, being slowest at neutral or near neutral pH values. Although, theoretically, the best drying conditions to avoid hydrolysis would be at normal room temperature or below, the drying rate is too slow for practical purposes. The other undesired reaction, namely oxidation, which results in hardening and discolouration of the product also proceeds faster at higher temperatures. We have found surprisingly that dry collagen fibre can be produced at an acceptable production rate by controlling the pH to the region of neutrality and subjecting the material to forced drying in a gas stream whose temperature is limited initially to less than about 60°C. Once the water content has been reduced to about 30 to 35%, the partially dried product can be exposed to a higher temperature gas stream than in the initial phase. When using a feedstock comprising split hides, the above reduction in water content can be reached within about 6 to 10 minutes, when operating at a gas stream temperature of about 45 to 48°C. The lower the temperature, the longer the residence time required and typically the residence tine will be between about 4 and 10 minutes in the initial phase. Currently, the preferred drying equipment comprises a fluidised bed formed by blowing the heated gas stream through a bed of separated pieces of the collagen-rich material. One fluidised bed drier or one or more zones of the fluidised bed drier may constitute the initial drying phase. The second or subsequent drying phases may be carried out in another zone or zones of the same drier or in another fluidised bed drier or driers. Although for economy the heated gas is preferably air, other drying gases may be used, e.g. nitrogen. the air or other gas may be subjected to a special pre-drying stage in order to increase its take up of moisture in the drier. Preferably, the initial heating stage should be carried out using a fluidising gas (normally air) heated to a temperature in the range of 35 to 50°C. The aim is to reduce the moisture content to about one half of the original content, i.e. a level of about 20 to 45%, typically about 25 to 30%. The drying rate for a particular fluidised bed will depend on a number of factors, including the initial water content of the collagen-containing material, the air temperature, the air flow and the state of sub-division of the material to be dried. Preferably, the material to be dried is separated into pieces which will pass a sieve 4 to 8 mm openings. In the case of hide splits, which is the preferred starting material and is rich in collagen, the raw material is treated to neutralise and remove the alkali, such as sodium sulphide and lime which are conventionally used in tanneries to remove hair and residual fat. This may be done by washing the split hides (before or after cutting into pieces) in dilute acid. e.g. 0.1 to 0.3% HCL, and then washed one or more times with water until a pH of about δ to 7, e.g. 6.5 is achieved. The separated pieces of split hide, which typically have dimensions of about 5 to 10 mms by 3 to 5 mms are conveyed in a stream of water from the final wash stage to the initial stage of the drying process. The hide splits are typically 2 to 8 mms thick. In this condition, the wet pieces of hide can be readily pumped. The hide pieces are separated from the water stream by passing the stream over a screen and then feeding the recovered hide pieces to the first stage of the drying process. The drying equipment preferably employed in the method of this invention is described in detail in copending European Patent Application No. 91309612.9 in the name of Stork Protecon B.V. (A copy of this co-pending application is iled herewith). Referring to the accompanying drawing {labelled Figure 1), which is Figure 2 of the above copending European patent application, the pieces of wet hide splits are fed to the first chamber or zone A of the drier. As described in European patent application No. 91309612.9, the drier is mounted on a vibrating base (not shown) . The heated air which is fed to zone A via plenum chamber A* is controlled to a maximum temperature of about 50-55°C, preferably less than 50°C. The temperature of the air fed to the sequential zones B to F may be substantially the same as that of zone A or the temperature gradually increased, e.g. to about 80°C. In the former case, the product discharged at 132 is transferred to a second drier in which the partially dried hide splits are subjected to fluidisation in an air stream having a higher temperature than the first air stream, e.g. preferably at about 60 to 80°C, e.g. 60 to 70°C, although this temperature could be higher, e.g. up to about 120°C, provided that the residence time was relatively short. At a temperature of about 70 to 80°C, the residence time is preferably about 6 to 8 minutes . The second drier which operates at a higher temperature, e.g. about 70 to 120°C, is preferably a fluidised bed drier having a vibrating base and divided into zones in a similar way to that shown in Figure 1. The output from the first vibrating drier unit can be directed by suitable conveyor (e.g. a belt conveyor or an Archimedes screw conveyor) to the second conveyor. The residence time in the first drier is preferably about 10 to 25 minutes, e.g. about 20 minutes. The residence time in the second drier is normally shorter, e.g. 10 to 20 minutes, usually about 15 minutes. It will be appreciated that the driers can include any number of drying zones and the partitions dividing the individual zones can be any of the designs 122-126 shown in Figure 1. The pieces of split hide fed to the first drier have a very high water content, which may be as high as 75 to 80%. Efficient agitation is very important in the initial stage since the surface of the pieces can become very sticky and adhere together in clumps or stick to the walls of the drying zone or chamber. Vigorous vibration of the base is effective in reducing this tendency as is also injection of jet streams of air within the fluidised bed as described in the above-mentioned European patent application. Mechanical agitation by a paddle or stirrer or flail may also be useful to reduce the tendency of the material to clump together. Using an air flow of 500 to 700 cubic metres of fluidising air per hour and an air temperature of 45 to 48°C in the initial stages, it has proved possible to achieve an initial drying rate of about 50 to 60 kgs of water per hour with a raw material feed of about 80-120 kgs per hour. This rate drops to about 7 to 15 kgs (e.g. about 10-12 kgs) per hour of water in the subsequent drying stage. In the second stage, the temperature can be increased because the dried outside skin insulates the wet interior from the contact temperature. There seems to be a temperature gradient through the pieces of semi-dried material and it appears to be only collagen in association with high concentrations of water which is particularly vulnerable to denaturing at temperatures of about 50°C and above. When the material had reached a water content of below 30%, the drying can be continued by increasing the temperature of the fluidising air to about 70-75°C and drying until a water content of about 5 to 12% is reached, preferably 7 to 10%. Using this sequence of temperatures, the target moisture content can be reached in about 25 to 60 minutes from introduction into the fluidised bed drier. While sequential batch drying using a fluidised bed drier is the preferred method of drying the collagen-rich material, other driers may also be employed. For example, apparatus of the kind described in US Patent No. 3214844 may be employed, in which the pieces of collagen-rich material could be conveyed in baskets, having apertured bases, through a drying zone or zones. The air velocity may be adjusted to fluidise or not the pieces of collagen- rich material. The conveyor may be operated continuously or in a step-wise manner. US Patent No. 41419834 and UK Patent No. 1075432 also disclose apparatus which may be used to effect the drying process of this invention. The process of this invention may include two or more driers which are preferably linked together with conveyors to take the output from one drier to the next. Preferably, there are three driers linked together sequentially and the temperature of the drying air streams preferably increases from the initial drier to the third drier. The output from the third drier may be transferred to a fourth drier or similar apparatus in which cooling air is passed through the collagen-rich material to gradually cool it to room temperature. The temperature of the gas stream in the second drier or zone need not be increased compared with that in the first drier or zone. It may be the same or even lower and the temperature increased in the third drier or zone. For example, in the first drier the temperature of the gas stream may be about 40 to 45°C. In the second drier the temperature may be the same initially or be reduced and the temperature gradually increased to 70 to 80°C, as the moisture level is reduced. As the moisture content approaches the target level, the temperature may be further increased, e.g. up to 90 to 120°C. This may be carried out in the second drier by increasing the temperature of the air stream or in a third drier. In the final drying step, the temperature may be gradually reduced to ambient by fluidising the material in an air stream at ambient temperatures. It is important to avoid overheating the collagen- containing material at high moisture contents. At higher water contents, e.g. above about 25 to 30%, the material should not be heated above about 50°C since otherwise the product can suffer substantial discolouration and conversion to gelatin. However, discolouration proceeds slower at lower moisture levels and one can increase the drying time and temperature above about 50 to 55°C, once a moisture content of about 25 to 30% or less is attained. The dried pieces of collagen-containing material can be converted into a fibrous product having a low powder content by milling in a hammer mill. A preferred mill is a type having swinging serrated hammers, preferably with a flow of air through the mill to take away powdery residues. The product aimed for has a fibre length of 2 to 4 mms and an average fibre diameter, in the range o 30 to 100 microns, preferably about 50 microns. The fibres should be highly branched with a well developed ancillary mass of fibrils extending from the main fibres. There should be a minimum of discolouration and the fibrous material resembles fine wool and has a white or creamy colour. A final water content of 7-10% and a bulk density of about 0.06 grams/cc plus or minus 0.02; 0.08g/cc is typical of the final product. The dried product is rich in collagen with a minimum converted to gelatin. The gelatinisation temperature of the products of the present invention is generally higher than that of conventional powdered collagen and is generally at least 80°C, e.g. 80 to 85°C. Figure 2 is a photomicrograph of dried fibrous collagen produced in accordance with the present invention. This micrograph was taken at a magnification of x 100. As can be seen, the fibres are highly branched and crimped and have many fibrils extending from the main group of fibres.

Claims: CLAIMS : - 1. A method of producing dried fibrous collagen which comprises subjecting pieces of material rich in collagen to drying under variable drying conditions, wherein, initially, said material is subjected to drying in a first stream of heated gas maintained at a temperature of less than about 60°C and subsequently exposing the resulting partially dried material to a second heated gas stream at a temperature which is higher than said first stream, the temperatures and treatment times during said drying being controlled to minimise discolouration and hydrolysis of the dried product and then milling the dried collagen to form a fibrous product. 2. A method according to claim 1 in which the temperature of the first gas stream is less than 55°C. 3. A method according to claim 1 or 2 in which the temperature of the second gas stream does not exceed about 90°C. 4. A method according to any one of the preceding claims in which the collagen is dried in a plurality of stages in which the material rich in collagen is fluidised in said first gas stream and subsequently fluidised in said second gas stream. 5. A method according to any one of the preceding claims in which said first gas stream is heated to a temperature of from about 40°C to 55°C. 6. A method according to any one of the preceding claims wherein after exposure to said.second heated gas stream, the material is gradually cooled in a cooling gas stream to ambient temperature. 7. A method according to claim 6 in which the material rich in collagen is subjected to one or more further drying treatments prior to the gradual cooling step. 8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims in which the drying in the first gas stream is continued until the water content has been reduced to about one half of its original content. 9. A method according to claim 8 in which the drying in the first gas stream is continued until the water content has been reduced to about 25 to 40% by weight. 10. A method according to claim 9 in which the drying in the first gas stream is continued until the water content is reduced to about 30 to 40% by weight. 11. Dried fibrous collagen having a water content of about 7 to 12% by weight and a branched, fibr llar structure, an average fibre length of from 2 to 5 mms and an average fibre diameter of from about 30 to 100 microns. 12. Dried fibrous collagen according to claim 11 which has a gelatinisation temperature of at least about 80°C.

Inventors: FRENCH JAMES WILLIAM LEONARD, VINCENT MAURICE WILLIAM, FRENCH, JAMES, WILLIAM, LEONARD, VINCENT, MAURICE, WILLIAM
Applicants: STORK FIBRON BV, STORK FIBRON B.V.
Application year: 1991
Main classification: A23J3
IPC codes: A23J1, A23J3, A23L1