Introduction to the use of commercial rapid freezer! A complete overview of tips on how to choose and how to make a purchase that takes advantage of subsidies!

``It seems that individual stores have become very prosperous after introducing commercial-use rapid freezer.''

Have you ever heard of a success story like this?

Due to the increasing demand for e-commerce and labor shortages, commercial rapid freezer that can preserve the taste of food are attracting attention. In recent years, an increasing number of food business operators have actually succeeded in converting their business formats to use commercial rapid freezer, and the freezing business using rapid freezer has now become a force to be reckoned with for restaurant management.

However, the market price of commercial rapid freezer is high, starting at around 3 million yen per unit. It's not something you can easily buy. Also, even if you have a vague understanding of ``refrigeration technology that freezes food quickly,'' you don't know which one to choose from among the multiple types, and are second-hand products ok? I think there are many people who are worried about this.

If successful, commercial rapid freezer will be highly cost-effective, but there are many cases where decisions are made based on price alone and fail. In order to avoid failure and get your freezing business back on track, it is important to understand the characteristics of rapid freezer and determine the compatibility between the food and the machine.

In addition, commercial rapid freezer are expensive, but if you take advantage of government subsidies, you may be able to purchase them for about half the price. Businesses considering the introduction of commercial rapid freezer should also check out information on subsidy systems.

Therefore, this article provides an introduction to the use of commercial rapid freezer, explaining how rapid freezer work, points to consider when choosing one, and the subsidy system that can keep prices down. If you are considering using it, please read it as a prelude before implementing it.

First of all, what is rapid freezing?

rapid freezing is a freezing technology that freezes food faster than normal home freezers, preserving its original taste. In the case of a home freezer, the temperature drops slowly from the outside, causing the water inside the food to expand and create large ice crystals that destroy the cells. This causes the flavor components to flow out as "drip." This is the cause of quality deterioration.

On the other hand, rapid freezer quickly pass through the temperature range (-1°C to -5°C) in which the water in the food freezes within 30 minutes, thereby preventing cell destruction and locking in the flavor and flavor of the food. Masu. Therefore, when thawed, it is possible to maintain the fresh taste before freezing.

In addition, rapid freezer technology has recently developed, and the types of foods that can be frozen are diversifying. Originally, it was mainly used at fishing ports and production sites, but now with the development of technology that allows for the freezing of cooked foods, its use has expanded to include restaurants.

Advantages of using commercial rapid freezer

So, what are the benefits of installing a commercial rapid freezer? We will introduce the needs for rapid freezer based on actual inquiries.

New business opportunities such as entering EC and expanding sales channels

In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in demand for the introduction of industrial-use rapid freezer with the aim of expanding sales channels. Now that we have the infrastructure and listing malls to sell directly anywhere in the country, the question is, "How can we deliver it?"

Even if you start e-commerce, if the quality is lower than what you offer in-store, you will disappoint your customers and damage your reputation. Ideally, even if you buy it online, you can reproduce the same taste as at the store. This is where rapid freezer come into play.

Recently, commercial rapid freezer have been developed that can freeze piping hot food, so even if it seems difficult to freeze foods at first glance, there are predictions that you should consider freezing them. In addition, the use of rapid freezer to expand sales channels is increasing regardless of the size of the business, and there are cases where privately run restaurants have entered the e-commerce market by using commercial rapid freezer, and sales have soared..

Reducing waste loss

Using a commercial rapid freezer allows you to cook and store food in bulk, eliminating the need for half-baked ingredients. Also, no matter how much sales forecasting and planning you do, you may be caught up in a sudden cancellation by a wholesaler. Having an environment that allows for high-quality frozen storage at any time allows you to respond to unforeseen situations, avoid wasting food, and reduce costs.

Resolving labor shortages and reducing labor costs

It takes a lot of effort to serve just one dish, from preparation to cooking to presentation. If you use a commercial rapid freezer, you can prepare meals in your spare time, or freeze and store pre-made meals depending on the menu, greatly reducing cooking time. By increasing production efficiency through planned cooking, you can eliminate labor shortages and reduce labor costs. Freezing also prevents the growth of bacteria, making it safer from a sanitary perspective.

Resistant to price fluctuations

The amount of harvest and catch greatly depends on the natural environment, such as the weather, and is difficult to predict. However, if too much food is harvested, the price of the ingredients will drop, resulting in decreased profits and waste. If you use a commercial rapid freezer, you won't be affected by these price fluctuations, and if you produce too much, you can store it frozen. In addition, for ingredients whose selling prices fluctuate depending on the season, you can increase profits by storing them in frozen stock so that you can ship them in large quantities during the high-priced seasons.

It is essential to determine the compatibility of commercial rapid freezer

As you can see, commercial rapid freezer have many benefits, but not all freezers are perfect for all foods. There are machine characteristics and compatibility with ingredients, and if you don't identify these and introduce them, you may not get the results you expect.

In fact, there are some people who have stopped using the commercial quick rapid freezer they purchased at a high price because it is not compatible with the quick freezer they purchased. If this happens, your investment will go to waste. In order to avoid failure, it is essential to understand the characteristics of rapid freezer and determine the compatibility between the machine and the food when installing a commercial rapid freezer.

What types of refrigeration technology? Broadly divided into 5 types

So, what types of commercial rapid freezer are there? Introducing the main types of refrigeration technology.

In general, rapid freezer is a machine that can freeze food by passing through the temperature range of -5°C to -1°C, where the water in the food freezes, within 30 minutes, as explained at the beginning. The key is how to achieve this speed, and commercial rapid freezer can be broadly divided into the following five types.

Air freezing (shock freezer)

This is a technology that quickly freezes food by exposing the food to strong air blast (air freezing) cold air.

For example, the ``Artlock Freezer'' is equipped with a ``Micro Wind System'' that allows for high-quality freezing without damaging ingredients, and a ``Smart Freeze'' that automatically adjusts according to the input temperature of ingredients, outside temperature, humidity, etc. It achieves stable, high-quality freezing of all foods no matter when or when you freeze them.

Another strength of the Artlock Freezer is that it can rapid freezing hot foods without pre-cooling. We meet the needs of restaurants that want to freeze cooked food as is.

By the way, the ``Blast Chiller'' developed by Hoshizaki and others is a machine that rapidly cools freshly cooked food to around 3℃. By quickly passing through the temperature range where bacteria proliferate (approximately 10℃ to 65℃), we reduce the risk of food poisoning and protect food safety. It is also used to quickly solidify foods such as jelly and pudding, reducing cooking time.

magnetic field freezing

Magnetic field freezing generates a magnetic field inside the freezer to finely vibrate water molecules, rapid freezing freezing the ice while keeping the ice crystals small. Because it is a collection of small ice particles, it does not damage cell membranes, and by uniformly freezing the entire ice cube, food damage can be suppressed. This is the case with CAS refrigeration.

Liquid freezing (liquid freezer)

Liquid freezing (liquid freezer) boasts overwhelming freezing speed compared to other rapid freezer. It is a technology that freezes food by immersing it in a liquid (such as alcohol with a low freezing point) at about -35°C. Since liquid has a much higher thermal conductivity than air, it can freeze food several times faster than air freezing. Re-Joice Freezer is this type of freezer.

​In principle, packaging before freezing is required to soak the food in liquid, but if you store it in a vacuum pack, you can prevent it from drying out after freezing. Another popular point is that it does not require any defrosting and can operate continuously 24 hours a day.

Tunnel freezer/spiral freezer

This is a type of air freezing, and is a large type commercial rapid freezer. Food is placed on a conveyor and passed through a tunnel while being exposed to strong cold air, where it is rapid freezing. They are often designed in a factory and require a certain amount of installation space.

In addition, the spiral freezer uses a vertical conveyor to solve the problem of installation space. Its features include space savings compared to processing capacity and flexibility in layout.

Although both have high running costs, they are very useful machines if they can be designed into a factory line. The air freezer Art Lock Freezer and the liquid freezer Re-Joice Freezer are also compatible with tunnel types.

liquid nitrogen freezing

This is a technology that freezes food by directly spraying liquid nitrogen vaporized at an extremely low temperature of -196℃ onto food. Food can be frozen instantly, but since it takes away the temperature of the food all at once, some foods tend to crack, and some foods are not suitable for it.

Key points and things to keep in mind when choosing a commercial rapid freezer

So far, we have introduced the types of commercial rapid freezer, but what points should you keep in mind when actually purchasing one? Next, we will explain what you need to be prepared for when purchasing rapid freezer and the key points to consider when choosing one.

What is the purpose of purchasing rapid freezer?

You need to organize what you want to do with rapid freezer. If the goal is to sell via e-commerce, it is preferable to have a shape that makes it easy to package after freezing.If the goal is to improve business efficiency, the amount and speed that can be frozen at one time may be important. We recommend that you first clarify your purpose and organize what points you want to focus on.

Identify foods to be frozen

Let's clarify what kind of ingredients and foods will be rapid freezing. By clarifying what you want to freeze, such as whether you want to freeze cooked food or uncooked food, you can narrow down the machine you choose. If you have a variety of uses, consider the frequency of use for each food item when choosing.

Think about cost-effectiveness, not price! Be wary of low-priced, second-hand items

Although the market price for rapid freezer is high, starting at around 3 million yen per unit, if you can make good use of commercial-grade machines, you can achieve great cost-effectiveness. There are some cheap commercial rapid freezer on the market, such as used items or small machines, but there is a correlation between performance and price, and the cheaper the machine, the lower the performance. There are many cases where low-priced second-hand products are purchased and then break down quickly, resulting in a loss.

On the other hand, a high-performance rapid freezer may seem expensive at first glance, but if you use a commercial rapid freezer that costs 3.5 million yen for 5 years, the cost will be 3,000 yen per day (calculated based on 20 days of operation per month). If it is effective, it will pay for itself. With the benefits of shorter cooking times and less waste, there's a good chance you'll reach the purchase price in no time.

Also, depending on rapid freezer, it is possible to purchase it on a lease basis. Some small rapid freezer can be purchased on lease at a low price. The biggest advantage of leasing is that you can reduce initial costs, so leasing is also an option if you want to use your cash for other purposes.

Where is it used and how is it compatible with the person who uses it?

If it is not easy to use, rapid freezer will not be able to perform to its full potential. Important points include the location where it will be installed and whether it will be easy for the people who will actually use it to use it during the work process. If you listen to the opinions of those in the field when making your selections, you will be less likely to make mistakes.

Ideally, freeze tests should be performed using multiple machines.

Once you have a clear idea of the purpose and ingredients for which you are using rapid freezer, it is ideal to conduct a freezing test under the guidance of an advisor with specialized knowledge. Even with the same ingredients, there are cases where the compatibility with the machine differs depending on the production area, so we recommend that you actually try freezing. Furthermore, you can feel even more secure if the company provides support such as lectures on how to use and aftercare in addition to freeze tests.

How can I reduce investment costs? Check out the subsidy system that allows you to purchase at half price

Finally, we will introduce how to obtain a high-priced commercial rapid freezer at a lower price by taking advantage of the subsidy system.

In Japan, a subsidy system called ``Manufacturing Subsidy'' has been established to support capital investment by small and medium-sized enterprises. The maximum subsidy amount is 10 million yen, which is 1/2 to 3/4 of the capital investment amount. By taking advantage of this, you can significantly reduce investment costs.

As a business considering the introduction of commercial rapid freezer, I would like to receive this subsidy, but the acceptance rate is only about 40%. It is necessary to take measures to ensure that the project is adopted, such as setting expectations for the development potential of the project in the business plan submitted with the application.

In addition, in the case of business reconstruction due to disasters or the effects of the new coronavirus, the subsidy rate may be increased or special subsidies may be provided. Gathering such information is also important for subsidy countermeasures.

The cost burden will vary greatly depending on whether your application is adopted or not, so we recommend that you plan carefully for subsidies before applying.

Conclusion

How was it?

I have explained that there are many benefits to using commercial rapid freezer, such as improving production efficiency and creating new business opportunities. On the other hand, if you do not identify and select a compatible commercial rapid freezer, the results may be halved.

It is recommended that you thoroughly understand the characteristics of commercial rapid freezer rapid freezer such as air freezing and liquid freezing, which have different freezing processes and media, and if possible, perform freezing tests with multiple rapid freezer.

In addition, if you take advantage of the subsidy system, you may be able to purchase expensive commercial rapid freezer at a lower price. Rather than choosing a used product based only on price, be conscious of cost-effectiveness and consider what kind of effects you want to achieve five or ten years from now when using rapid freezer. Make a solid plan and make full use of rapid freezer technology to make your refrigeration business a success.

This time we have summarized the basics of commercial rapid freezer. Please use this information to gather information about the performance, price, subsidies, etc. of rapid freezer before you purchase them.