Dairy & Whey Treatment
Vibrating screen separation for cheese whey processing, maximising product recovery, protecting downstream equipment and reducing maintenance costs.
From by-product to high-value ingredient
Cheese whey has evolved from a low-value animal feed by-product into a high-value human food ingredient. Efficient separation technology is key to unlocking that value, recovering cheese fines, protecting downstream equipment and ensuring consistent product quality.
The Challenge
To extract water from cheese whey, many producers use a combination of coarse prefiltration, centrifuges, pasteurisation and reverse osmosis. However, these systems have significant limitations when processing liquids with high or large solids content:
- 1Centrifuge fixed parts are damaged by coarse solids, leading to costly repairs and downtime
- 2Reverse osmosis membranes become overloaded and plugged, reducing capacity and lifespan
- 3Fat-rich solids pass through untreated, reducing downstream equipment efficiency
- 4Recovered cheese fines lose structural integrity through conventional separation methods
These issues directly impact product yield, equipment longevity and overall production economics.
Pre-filtration that protects your process
By placing a vibrating screen separator as a prefilter in the installation, a large part of the solids are filtered out of the cheese whey before reaching sensitive downstream equipment.
Cheese curd recovery
The recovered cheese curds maintain almost the same structure and quality as the cheese in production. Unlike centrifuges or rotating sieves, the vibrating screen is designed to preserve product integrity, resulting in a better price per kilo.
Centrifuge protection
The fat centrifuge placed after the screen removes remaining fat from the whey. By pre-filtering effectively, the centrifuge is less stressed, requires less maintenance, and operates more efficiently.
Membrane protection
Clean, pre-filtered whey significantly extends the service life of RO and UF membranes, reduces cleaning frequency, and prevents costly membrane replacements.
Whey Separation in Practice
Since 2004, vibrating screen technology has transformed the global cheese industry. What was once a low-value by-product destined for animal feed has become a high-value food ingredient, thanks to efficient separation that maximises yield and delivers rapid return on investment.
Optimising and sustaining your cheese whey treatment process. Pre-filtration removes solids before they reach sensitive centrifuges and membranes, reducing maintenance costs and improving overall process efficiency.
Performance, Efficiency & Operational Value
Our vibrating separators deliver reliable, high-capacity whey treatment:
Results depend on specific whey composition, flow rates and process configuration. We work with each client to determine the optimal screen mesh, machine size and setup.