Innovator and Pioneer

How we improve the baking world

Quality & Service

Cetravac – Innovator and Pioneer

25 years of research and development work combined with our passion result in the best system technology

Today's technology for vacuum conditioning of food is inextricably linked to the research and development work of our company. In conjunction with various institutes, raw material specialists, and practitioners from the food industry, we developed process technologies tailored to each product and application objective, as well as the necessary system technology for both batch and continuous use. Process and technology form the foundation for the successful application of vacuum conditioning.

Ready To Eat (R2E) with Cetravac Technology

One example of this interplay is the Ready To Eat (R2E) process developed by Cetravac. Fully baked products are vacuum-conditioned after baking, then packaged and frozen. After thawing, the products are ready to eat without any re-baking – crispy and crunchy on the outside, moist and fresh on the inside. The process is ideal for Sunday sales without a baking process, producing larger batch quantities in advance, expanding the catering range, and opening up new customer groups. At the same time, it enables a particularly efficient and energy-optimised production process while maintaining consistently high product quality.

The process is ideal for Sunday sales without a baking process, producing larger batch quantities in advance, expanding the catering range, and opening up new customer groups. At the same time, it enables a particularly efficient and energy-optimised production process while maintaining consistently high product quality.

"Ready To Eat Baked Goods"© is a protected designation for this process developed by Cetravac and stands for an innovative solution that simplifies production processes and opens up new sales opportunities.

Your Benefits at a Glance:

  • Streamlined Production: You produce your Ready To Eat© products at ease during the day – entirely without night shifts.

  • Energy Savings: No re-baking in the branch – this reduces electricity costs and simplifies on-site processes.

  • Highest Product Quality: Your baked goods impress with better volume, finer crumb structure, and a pleasantly soft crumb.

  • Fast Availability: Thawing time of only approximately 90 minutes – ideal for spontaneous demand situations.

  • Efficient Production: Larger batch production reduces set-up times and increases your efficiency.

  • Sustainability: You reduce the carbon footprint of your frozen products – through lower energy requirements throughout the entire process chain.

  • Optimised returns management: Longer shelf life and demand-appropriate quantities minimise losses.

  • Flexible further processing: Ideal also as a base for creative recipes – sweet or savoury.

Cetravac Vacuum-Interrupted Baking Method

The Cetravac vacuum-interrupted baking method, originally patented in 1997, makes it possible to produce par-baked products with unprecedented quality and stability. The par-baked goods are taken from the oven in a pale (unbrowsed) state and vacuum-conditioned.

This process step ensures incomparable stability of both crust and crumb. At the same time, the critical temperature range for the dough pieces is passed through very quickly.

This enables storage without refrigeration or freezing processes for up to 4 days. The baking time of the par-baked, i.e. pale, products without browning is also shortened through the use of vacuum conditioning.

This means that not only shelf life, quality, and stability can be increased, but additional operating costs can also be saved. The result is par-baked products that cannot be produced more economically or sustainably. More on the advantages of vacuum technology for par-baked products:

First Continuous Vacuum Conditioning in Germany

A milestone in the development history of Cetravac is the commissioning of the first continuous vacuum conditioning system at Bäckerei Junge in Lübeck at the end of 2017. From a MIWE tunnel oven, par-baked rolls are vacuum-conditioned for two to three minutes after an extremely short initial baking phase. The baked goods can then be immediately packaged, placed in crates, and automatically stacked on pallets. The vacuum-conditioned baked goods can then be stored at ambient temperature, transported to the branches, and when needed, perfectly finished in terms of colour, crispness, and taste in just six to seven minutes. The shelf life of the baked goods stored at room temperature is up to 4 days.