The story of cold-pressing chocolate

21 Mar 2013

Aasted-Mikroverk developed the basic technology for cold pressing of chocolate (in the technology center of Aasted-Mikroverk in 1988-1992), enabling the chocolate producers to use this technology in their production.

Cold pressing of chocolate - Perhaps the biggest invention within chocolate moulding since Jensen developed the first automatic moulding line in 1923.

In 1992 the patented Frozen Cone Shell Making System was introduced to chocolate moulding lines by Aasted-Mikroverk, continuously developing the technology of the first Rim Plate System (i.e. the rim plate is totally closed, and the articles are deposited in well-defined cavities with great finish and little variation in chocolate consumption), not least introducing the Perfect Shell System with individual moveable cones, and especially the ChocoAssort Technology (i.e. assortment boxes are deposited, filled and closed in the mould, being directly transferred into blister in one production).

The technology was a massive success, and after few years on the market, several other manufacturers of machinery developed their type of cold pressing equipment.

Since its introduction this invention has enabled a breakthrough in making chocolate shells beyond your imaginations.

In the following Aasted would like to explain, why they still have the best system for shell making.

Possibilities and Advantages:

With the Frozen Cone Technology you can produce shells from many different masses such as: Tempered chocolate, milk, dark or white, compound chocolate, caramel or other fat based masses.
The Frozen Cone Technology is perfect for tablets, pralines, hollow products and many more.
The chocolate masses can range from approximately 5000 Cp to 40.000 Cp in viscosity
One of the major advantages of the Frozen Cone Technology is a 100 % control of the chocolate due to the rim plates and the individual moveable cones forming a shell in each cavity to exact dimensions repeatedly.
This is contrary to traditional shell moulding or more simple cold stamping systems, which are very dependent on viscosity and yield properties during production, because the chocolate floats uncontrolled during shell forming.

Many years of practical use with the Frozen Cone Technology have established:

More stable, stronger shells and less fat bloom
Unlimited design features
Reinforcement can be made internally in the shells in order to operate with large scale of fillings, not depending on contraction between filling and chocolate, which could create bending of the final product (Banana effect). With the Frozen Cone Technology we design the cones/stamps to make the inner shells touch the bottom chocolate. These rips improve the strength of the tablet, thus reducing the bending.
Avoidance of filling leaks by keeping constant shell thickness all the time during production.
Constant shell thickness, filling percentage and bottom thickness at all time during production, increasing the product quality.
Less inspection and adjustments during production compared to traditional shell moulding. In a Frozen Cone line no adjustments are needed, when the chocolate viscosity changes – and thus no need for weight checks in the line.
Energy saving related to shell making process using the Frozen Cone Technology is approx. 25 % in comparison with the traditional method.