PMCA’s 66th annual production conference, which will be held April 30 - May 2 in Lancaster, Pa., focuses on Basics and Beyond, an approach that examines various topics more deeply, particularly hard candy. Speakers will zero in on a variety of regulatory, packaging, production, and formulation issues related to hard candy. In addition, industry experts will discuss commodity regulation, with a special emphasis on beet and cane sugar.
Monday, April 30
Basics and Beyond Seminar: Hard Candy –The Sweet Blend of Art & Technology
Welcome and Introduction
Pamela Gesford, senior consultant, Knechtel, Inc., will provide a basic overview of the topic and highlights of the Basics and Beyond program.
Hard Candy: From Hard Crack to Glass Transition
Richard Hartel, professor — food engineering, University of Wisconsin – Madison, will present an overview of hard candy production including ingredients, processing, composition, flavor release, stability and shelf life as well as molecular composition and arrangement to characteristic attributes.
Filled, Laminated Hard Candy
Laminated, filled hard candies are old-fashioned specialties characterized by a crunchy texture. Ivan Fabry, consultant, IF Suesswarenberatung, Wuppertal/Germany, will present key parameters, formulations and automatic methods in the production of filled, laminated hard candy.
Aeration and Vacuum Expansion of Hard Confections
John Flanyak, owner and president, Flanyak Scientific, LLC, will present the steps involved in hard candy processing, aeration methods and techniques, product formulations and vacuum expansion processing methods. Additionally, various kinds of equipment will be discussed and detailed equipment parameters will be highlighted.
Ribbon Candy and Cut Rock –
How Do They Do It?
Using a YouTube ribbon candy video and a hand-forming demonstration, Jim McGovern, consultant,JM Consulting, will explain the process of producing ribbon candy and cut rock, detailing parameters and methods.
Depositing Hard Candy
Martin Bond, chief engineer – confectionery, Baker Perkins, will examine the origins, current technology and future potential of the depositing process, with an emphasis on how advanced engineering is supporting creative development of unique end products including striped, filled and layered sweets and lollipops. The presentation will include a live depositing demonstration by Tony Prange, senior process engineer, Baker Perkins.
Tuesday Morning, May 1, 2012
Ghirardelli Chocolate Co.’s Steve Genzoli, vice president quality assurance and research development, will moderate the morning sessions.
U.S. Sugar Production from Sugarcane
Kenneth Gravois, sugarcane specialist, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, will provide an overview on sugarcane production and will examine field harvesting, raw sugar processing and refining.
Producing Quality Sugar from Beet – From Field to Shelf
Starting with the production of a seed crop in Oregon’s Willamette Valley and ending with the processing of beets after harvest, Paul Pfenninger, vice president – agriculture, Michigan Sugar Co., will walk the audience, step by step, through the process of producing quality sugar from sugar beets.
The NAFTA Sugar Complex: Current Situation and Near Term
Frank Jenkins, president, Jenkins Sugar Group, Inc., will discuss current domestic sugar policy, as well as U.S. and Mexican supply and demand. His research will suggest that high prices will prevail for the balance of 2012, but relief may be on the way.
The Genome of Theobroma Cacao, A New Tool for Accelerating Breeding and Research
The recent publication of the cacao genome sequence has led to the identification of a large number of genes potentially involved in several important plant functions. Siela Maximova, research associate professor – department of horticulture, The Pennsylvania State University, will provide a summary of the most significant findings and the future applications of genomics research for development of new elite cacao varieties.
Cocoa Traceability and Certification
Ruth Moloney, head – development and sustainability, Americas,Armajaro Trading, Inc., will highlight the history behind the sustainability movement in cocoa and some of the leading certification systems. She will also outline some traceability systems and alternatives to both certification and traceability, and finally provide some advice on how to get started.
Tuesday Afternoon, May 1, 2012
Rose Potts, corporate manager – sensory and product guidance, Blommer Chocolate Co., will moderate the afternoon sessions.
Regulatory Update for the Confectionery Industry 2012
Alison Bodor, sr. v.p. – public policy, National Confectioners Association, will provide an overview of regulatory and policy development impacting the confectionery industry, focusing on the latest FDA regulations implementing the Food Safety Modernization Act. Other changes to FDA regulations, such as new labeling requirements, will be discussed, as well as other food policy hot topics.
Advancements in Panning:
What’s new? And their justification.
Through the use of videos and product samples,Robert Boutin, president, Knechtel, Inc., will show advancements in panning, look at purchase costs, and discuss how these systems work and offer some real world justifications using ROI calculations.
How Hard Working is your packaging?
Simon Gainey, co-founder and owner, Competitive Innovation LLC, will take a look at some examples of hard working packaging and how leading brand owners think about packaging beyond just a simple protection device.
Social Audits – Empowering Responsible Supply Chains
Bernie Giblin, director – global operations, Sedex, will address the definition of a social audit. Specifically, Giblin will touch on why it’s important for all businesses to conduct a social audit process as well as discuss some of the challenges faced in this area by the confectionery industry.
PMCA Research Committee Update
Jeffrey Fine, director – new products and technology, AAK USA, will provide an overview of the activities of the committee, including current grants in aid research projects.
PMCA Education and Learning Committee Update
Dennis Zak, consultant, TMResource, LLC, will provide a report on the association’s short-course program including highlights of recent courses and a look at future offerings.
Keynote Address Tuesday Evening, May 2, 2012
Give Into Candy Love
Candy crosses all age groups and demographics as a simple pleasure. It’s also widely vilified as dangerous to dental health, our hearts, waistlines and even politics. It’s time to stop being defensive and fall in love with candy again through the eyes of a true candy lover, Cybele May, CandyBlog author.
Wednesday Morning, May 2, 2012
The morning sessions will be moderated by James Bew, principal scientist – international research and development, The Hershey Co.
The Origin of Chocolate Aeration
The development of aerated chocolate dates back to the1930s. Maurice Jeffery, consultant,Jeffery Associates, will cover the progression of several chocolate aeration manufacturing methods leading to the one covered by the next speaker.
A Practical Guide to Chocolate Aeration
Jordana Swank, associate staff scientist - food research and discovery, The Hershey Co., will review today’s most widely used methods for creating a range of bubble sizes and textures in chocolate, including dissolved gas injection, microaeration and fat-based crème aeration. Critical processing parameters and a trouble shooting guide also will be discussed.
Development of Water-in-Oil Emulsions for Application to Model Chocolate Products
Lauren Killian, research scientist, The Hershey Co., will detail PMCA-funded research on the formation of water-in-oil emulsions using cross-flow membrane emulsification as well as detail possible practical applications. She also will examine other research avenues worth exploring.
Integrated Pest Management – Gateway to Safe and Quality Cocoa
Samuel Orisajo, principal research officer, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, will — with the help of illustrations — explore the basic principles of Integrated Pest Management (PMI) as the key to long term, sustainable and environmentally friendly cacao cultivation, one that ensures an adequate supply of quality cocoa well into the future.
Agriculture Investment in Cote d’Ivoire
Dr. Coulibaly Nouhoun, Ivory Coast, will describe the challenges presented to the producing country, other producing countries and the user. The presentation will look at how the Ivory Coast became the biggest supplier of cocoa and what that means for their population.
Spotlight on Sugar
This year’s feature exhibit at the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Confectioners’ Association’s (PMCA) 66th Annual Production Conference centers on a material confectioners cannot live without – sugar.
The vital commodity, as found in sugar cane and sugar beets, will be the focus of the Supplier Exhibition.
Attendees will have the opportunity to learn about the complexities of sugar farming and production and the various forms of sugar produced from these two plants.
Sugar, at one time in history as valuable as gold, is now part of everyday life around the world.
Although there are other types of sweeteners, sugar is relatively inexpensive to transport, easy to store and is almost imperishable. It occurs in the greatest quantities in sugar cane and sugar beets, from which it is separated for commercial use and used in the preparation of foods, as an additive to drinks and as a preservative and fermenting agent.
The display will include tasting samples of sugar in various forms for attendees to enjoy.
A limited number of plants also will be available for attendees to take home along with instructions on how to grow and care for their sugar plant.
