Vacuum in the Dairy Industry

Curd and whey must be transported hygienically and reliably while avoiding contamination, blockages and product damage. Continuous flow is essential to keep production stable and efficient.

Vacuum and overpressure technologies enable closed, controlled conveying through pipelines.

Dry claw vacuum pumps, liquid ring vacuum pumps and rotary lobe blowers provide stable air flow for gentle product transfer, while filtration systems help protect the vacuum equipment from particles, liquids and residues.

Cheese vacuum chambers require precise vacuum control for degassing, molding, cooling and dewatering. Key challenges include removing entrapped gases, achieving uniform texture and shape, and extracting whey efficiently.

Controlled vacuum removes air and gases, helps distribute and consolidate the curd evenly and supports to achieve the desired moisture level, firmness and texture.

Liquid ring vacuum pumps, dry claw vacuum pumps and oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps provide reliable performance, while suitable filtration protects the equipment from liquids and process residues.

Cooling

Vacuum lowers the boiling point of moisture in the cheese. The resulting evaporation removes heat from the product surface, enabling rapid and gentle cooling after forming and pressing. This stabilizes the product and helps limit unwanted bacterial growth.

Degassing

Vacuum degassing removes trapped air and fermentation gases from the curd. This prevents unwanted air pockets and creates a denser, more uniform cheese structure.

Molding

Under vacuum, the curd is evenly distributed and compacted inside the mold. This reduces holes and voids and supports a consistent shape, texture and maturation process.

Dewatering

Vacuum helps extract residual whey from the curd, supporting the desired moisture level, firmness and flavor.

Cheese towers, also known as cheddaring towers, require constant vacuum, reliable moisture handling and continuous operation. Residual air and whey must be removed effectively while maintaining uniform curd density and consistent product quality throughout the tower.

Stable vacuum supports consistent curd density, reliable whey removal and uniform product quality.

Liquid ring vacuum pumps, dry claw vacuum pumps and oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps provide robust vacuum generation for continuous operation, including demanding moisture conditions.

Cheese packaging must protect freshness, flavor and texture while extending shelf life and reducing spoilage. High-throughput packaging lines also require reliable vacuum cycles and consistent packaging quality.

Vacuum packaging removes air and oxygen from the package to help protect product quality and shelf life.

Oil-lubricated rotary vane, dry screw and claw vacuum pumps support reliable packaging processes, while vacuum boosters help shorten evacuation times in high-throughput lines. Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) can provide additional protection for sensitive cheese products such as hard cheese.

Cheese products must be transferred quickly, gently and hygienically between cutting, processing, packaging and end-of-line handling steps. Vacuum grippers can be used to pick cheese blocks, load and unload cutting lines, place slices into thermoformed packs and handle packaged cheese products.

After packaging, Pick & Place systems can place products into cartons or trays and prepare them for palletizing.

Dry claw vacuum pumps and side channel blowers provide the stable vacuum supply required for fast, precise and repeatable handling.

After packaging, vacuum grippers can be used to transfer butter packs into cartons or trays and prepare them for palletizing. Gentle, reliable handling helps prevent product damage while supporting hygienic, automated end-of-line processes.

Dry claw vacuum pumps and side channel blowers provide stable vacuum for fast and repeatable Pick & Place operations.

Milk powder production requires gentle water removal while maintaining product quality, flavor, color and nutritional value. High vapor loads, moisture and continuous operation place demanding requirements on the vacuum equipment. Vacuum lowers the boiling temperature, thus, evaporation can be performed at lower temperatures.

Liquid ring vacuum pumps, oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps and vacuum boosters provide robust performance for moisture-rich processes and high vapor loads.

Milk powder must be transported hygienically and reliably while avoiding contamination, moisture exposure, blockages and product damage. This is especially important for sensitive products such as infant formula.

Depending on the product and system design, milk powder can be conveyed using vacuum or overpressure. Pressure conveying may be suitable for longer distances or higher conveying capacities, while vacuum conveying helps prevent product leakage into the production environment.

Dry claw vacuum pumps, rotary lobe blowers, side channel blowers and oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps support stable flow, clean handling and reliable operation.

Milk powder packaging must protect the product from moisture and oxygen to preserve quality, shelf life and storage stability. Packaging defects or leaks can lead to contamination, spoilage and product loss.

Vacuum packaging and MAP removes air from the package and helps protect sensitive powders from moisture and oxidation.

Oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps, dry screw vacuum pumps and vacuum boosters support reliable packaging processes, while leak detection technologies help verify packaging integrity as part of quality control.

Once filled and sealed, bags, cans or cartons of milk powder can be handled by Pick & Place systems with vacuum grippers. These systems place products into cartons, arrange them in trays or stack cartons on pallets.

Reliable vacuum generation supports fast, precise and hygienic handling at the end of the production line.

Dry claw vacuum pumps and side channel blowers are well suited to clean, automated handling processes.

Cheese is commonly packaged using vacuum packaging or Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP). Vacuum packaging removes air from the package, while MAP replaces it with a protective gas mixture. Both methods help preserve freshness, flavor and product quality while extending shelf life and reducing spoilage.

Depending on the packaging process and required capacity, oil-lubricated rotary vane or dry screw vacuum pumps can be used. Vacuum boosters may provide additional pumping capacity for high-throughput packaging lines.

For plants with several packaging machines or varying production throughput, a central vacuum system can regulate vacuum capacity according to actual demand. This can reduce energy consumption, the number of installed pumps and maintenance cost.

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A vacuum pump continuously removes air from the milking system to create and maintain a stable vacuum level. Together with the pulsator, this causes the teat cup liners to open and close, allowing milk to flow while the teat tissue regularly recovers.

A correctly sized vacuum pump, a reliable vacuum regulator and properly adjusted pulsation are essential for consistent milk flow, efficient operation and gentle milking. An unstable vacuum level can reduce milking performance and negatively affect animal comfort.

The most common vacuum technologies used in milking systems are dry claw vacuum pumps, liquid ring vacuum pumps, rotary lobe blowers, oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps and central vacuum systems based on dry claw technology.

Dry claw vacuum pumps offer oil-free compression for low maintenance requirements and energy-efficient operation. Rotary lobe blowers are often used for larger milking systems with high capacity requirements, while water ring pumps are suited for harsh environments because they are tolerant to moisture and dirt. Oil-lubricated rotary vane vacuum pumps are a proven and reliable solution for maintaining a stable vacuum level.

Each technology has different requirements regarding operating fluids, maintenance and system design. The best fit of technology depends on the number of milking units, required capacity, operating hours, vacuum level, sound level, environment requirements and available maintenance resources.

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The right vacuum pump for a dairy farm depends on the size and design of the milking system used. Important factors include the number of milking units, required vacuum level, capacity, operating hours, hygiene requirements, noise level and expected future growth.

Energy and water consumption, maintenance and lubrication requirements and the total cost of ownership should also be considered. For larger installations or varying demand, a controlled-speed or centralized vacuum system may be more efficient than a single fixed-speed pump.

A professional system assessment helps ensure that the vacuum pump is correctly sized and provides a stable, reliable and energy-efficient vacuum supply.

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The total cost of ownership includes energy and water consumption, maintenance, spare parts, operating fluids and production downtime. Correctly sized equipment, demand-based control and preventive maintenance can help reduce these costs over the lifetime of the vacuum system.

Busch Vacuum Diagnostics assesses the complete vacuum supply, including equipment, system design, operating environment, maintenance strategy and energy consumption, to identify optimization potential and improve efficiency and reliability.

OO Digital Services continuously monitor connected vacuum pumps and help detect emerging issues at an early stage. This supports condition-based and predictive maintenance and reduces the risk of unplanned failures. In dairy production, where even short periods of downtime can lead to considerable productivity and financial losses, this contributes to high system availability and more predictable operating costs.

Milking systems generally use a continuous vacuum supply. The pulsation is created separately by a pulsator, which alternately opens and closes the teat cup liners.

The key requirement is therefore not a pulsating vacuum pump, but a stable vacuum level combined with reliable pulsation control. This supports consistent milk flow, animal comfort and efficient milking performance.

Milk powder is produced by first concentrating milk through evaporation, usually under vacuum to lower the boiling temperature. The concentrated milk is then dried into powder, conveyed through closed systems and packaged to protect it from moisture and oxygen.

As part of quality control, leak testing can be used to verify packaging integrity and help ensure that the sensitive powder remains protected throughout storage and transport.

Vacuum lowers the boiling point of milk, allowing water to be removed at a lower temperature. This reduces thermal stress as well as energy consumption and helps preserve the milk’s nutritional value, flavor and color during milk powder production.

Dairy producers can reduce resource consumption and environmental impact by selecting the right vacuum technology, matching capacity to actual demand and using controlled-speed or centralized vacuum systems.

Where process conditions allow, efficient dry vacuum pumps can replace water-consuming vacuum generation. As they operate without water in the compression chamber, they can reduce freshwater use and wastewater generation. They can also avoid oil emissions from the compression process. For wet or vapor-rich processes, liquid ring vacuum systems with partial recirculation can help lower water consumption.

A correctly designed vacuum system can also reduce energy costs, heat emissions and noise levels, for example by operating pumps on demand or locating the vacuum supply away from sensitive production and working areas.

Busch provides reliable and energy-efficient vacuum solutions for dairy processes, from milking and cheese production to butter processing, evaporation, powder handling and packaging.

The portfolio includes individual vacuum pumps, central vacuum systems, intelligent controls and monitoring, supported by application expertise and global service.