Reducing Waste Saves Supermom's $235,000 Yearly

Case Study, Minnesota Technical Assistance Program, University of Minnesota

Food Processor Cuts Energy Use, COD and Labor Costs

Company: Supermom’s Bakery; St. Paul Park, Minnesota

Industry: Bakery and deli food processing

Goal:  Improve efficiency and promote waste reduction facility wide as well as reduce the amount of solids and sugar glaze in their wastewater.

Change: Purchased more-efficient equipment and modified existing equipment. Introduced steps to prevent solids from entering wastewater.

Benefits: Supermom’s saves at least $235,000 a year through their waste reduction efforts. Supermom’s has substantially reduced their solid waste, introduced energy and labor efficient technologies and reduced water treatment costs.      

Background

Supermom’s Bakery in St. Paul Park, employs 175 people in their bakery and 75 more in their sandwich deli area. They make 100,000 donuts a day which are sold through the Super America gas station stores. Since 1990, Supermom’s has steadily implemented waste reduction measures. They reduced their annual wastewater treatment charges from $30,000 to around $5,000. Implementing waste reduction measures over time made them feasible andmanageable while providing long-term pay-offs. Supermom’s tackles one issue at a time, continually tightening up their system.

Most savings occurred where new technology could prevent wasted ingredients and reduce labor costs. Faced with rising water treatment charges, Supermom’s also found ways to lower the chemical oxygen demand (COD) of their wastewater. Supermom’s actively involves its employees in the waste reduction process, encouraging their feedback and support.

Efficient Ovens

Three new rack ovens, which operate at 95 percent efficiency, were installed to work in tandem with older less efficient traveling-tray ovens. The ovens cost $30,000 dollars a piece with a $1,500 environmental improvement rebate on each from their utility company. The ovens only took six months to pay for themselves. The new ovens use 20 percent less energy than the older ones. They are much less labor intensive to operate, bake in eight minutes instead of 12, and have a baking temperature of 3500F instead of 4000F. Compared to the old ovens, the new ovens cost $14,000 less a month to operate, saving Supermom’s $168,000 a year.

Water

Focusing on the most important processes in its facility, Supermom’s identified its major waste sources and found options to reduce the waste. Also, sugar, shortening, icing and glaze waste and reject donuts are now collected for reuse by a livestock feed company.

Conveyor and Deep Fryer System

• One of the most effective changes that Supermom’s made was to cement over the floor drain that ran the length of the donut deep fryer and conveyor system. Previously, sugar glaze residue could fall off the conveyor and wash down the drain during cleaning.
• Rotating brushes were installed under the conveyor system to sweep sugar glaze off the conveyor belt and into hanging catch pans. Sheets of vinyl were hung under the conveyors to catch fallen icing. The conveyor belt, where glazing is applied, cycles through a wash bin to remove excess glaze. Automatic brushes alongside the conveyor wipe additional sugar residue off the belt and into the wash bin.
• Instead of discharging vegetable shortening and oil waste from the deep fryer into the drain, a refurbished dairy storage tank collects the used shortening at the end of the day. During the day, shortening is filtered to maintain quality and recirculated.

Tray Washer
The machine that washes donut trays has a large metal lip so that employees can dump the trays out before loading them into the washer. Previously sprinkles, batter and donut particles would go into the washer and down the drain. In addition, the water inside of the washer is now recirculated. A separate freshwater cycle performs the final rinse. At the end of the day when the water is discharged, fabric filters catch any remaining solid particles.

Icing Vats
Moving to bulk preparation and storage for icing eliminated the need to wash 65 to 100 icing mixing buckets a day. Icing is now stored in three large stainless steel mixing vats: one each for chocolate, caramel and vanilla flavors. The vats had a total purchase cost of $45,000. The two larger vats hold 1,200 pounds of icing, while the smaller one holds 750 pounds.

In each previously washed bucket, four to five ounces of icing would be washed down the drain. Eliminating this waste saves Supermom’s $2,000 a year. Eliminating the three hours a night spent washing buckets saves Supermom’s around $40,000 yearly and reduces their overall water consumption. Icing is only mixed once in the morning now, as opposed to multiple daily mixings on an as-needed basis. The temperature controlled vats yield consistently higher quality icing than did individual bucket mixing. The vats had a payback time of about one year.

Results

Supermom’s efforts to reduce waste save the company $235,000 every year. Some of the new equipment was expensive but could be justified by short payback times followed by substantial savings. In addition, Supermom’s concern for environmentally sound practices has enhanced its image as a responsible corporate citizen. By keeping operating costs down and by investing in efficient equipment, Supermom’s is securing a competitive future for itself.

More Information

MnTAP has a variety of technical assistance services available to help Minnesota companies reduce and manage their industrial waste. If you would like MnTAP assistance call 612/624-1300 or 800/247-0015 from greater Minnesota.

(11/99-74)