Ibsa Bierzo is a company with more than 40 years of history, located in the region of El Bierzo, in Leon, which is dedicated to produce all kinds of vegetable preserves using artisanal methods and available in different formats. They offer braised and candied vegetables, vegetable creams, organic legumes, Asian sauces, tomato sauces, hummus and other organic vegetable preserves.
Their preserves and sauces are characterized by the use of local ingredients and these products do not contain preservatives, colorants or gluten. Their products are available in glass jars of 200-300 grams, in one-kilogram doypacks or in cans of approximately three kilograms.
Ibsa Bierzo is a company that operates throughout the Iberian Peninsula, it can be found both in large supermarkets and in local markets, and also sells its products online.
In addition, the company has an R&D department in charge of researching, developing and testing new recipes in order to offer high quality natural products compatible with a healthy diet.
Challenge: expanding the product range and improving the quality of their natural preserves
During all the time they have been working in this business, Ibsa Bierzo has noticed how the competition is increasing and the consumers are becoming more and more demanding and health conscious. And although they have always produced natural preserves, without preservatives or colorants, they know the importance of continuing research in this area in order to expand their range of products and optimize, whenever possible, their quality.
For this reason, they created their own R&D department to develop new combinations of ingredients that do not require any type of food additive. This was a significant achievement for Ibsa Bierzo because it meant no longer outsourcing the research, development and testing of its preserves to an external food engineering company. From that moment on, they began to perform those tasks on their own.
Challenge: Build their own R&D department
They knew that having this new service would mean a radical change for them, because it would allow them to delve into new recipes, such as the Asian sauces they now offer. A new challenge was presented to them, which was to supply their department with the necessary equipment to carry out its functions. Among them, the most important is an autoclave to pasteurize or sterilize their preserves and check the resistance of their containers. And consequently, to improve existing products and develop new ones (sauces, etc.).
“We chose the TERRA Food-Tech-Tech® autoclave due to the high reliability it offers.”
Silvia Fernández, Head of R&D
Solution: Using an autoclave to test their products and containers
After an extensive research, they came across with TERRA Food-Tech® autoclaves, a specialty brand that offers small-format benchtop autoclaves for R&D laboratories in the food industry.
The technical team of Ibsa Bierzo’s R&D department confirmed that they chose TERRA Food-Tech® because it was reliable and trustworthy, in addition to offering an excellent technical assistance and customer service.
“During the installation of the equipment as well as throughout the after-sales service, we have been fully supported, and we have received an immediate response from TERRA Food-Tech ® to any problem.”
Silvia Fernández, Head of R&D
They admit that they use the autoclave on daily basis and it is an important piece of equipment for their department, as they can perform research and testing at their own pace.
In addition, they noticed that TERRA Food-Tech®, like them, follows an environmentally friendly policy and could be required to comply with ecological measures such as the use of renewable energy sources, the reduction of waste and emissions, as well as the use of recycled materials. The fact that these autoclaves do not require fossil fuels for their operation is important.
“I believe that an autoclave is essential for R&D departments within the food industry that employ pasteurization-sterilization processes, as it guarantees the sterility of products intended for sale.”
Silvia Fernández, Head of R&D
“I would recommend TERRA Food-Tech® without hesitation.”
Silvia Fernández, Head of R&D