Pigging Systems: Reducing Product Loss in Food & Beverage Pipelines
Every product changeover leaves valuable material behind in the pipeline. Pigging systems recover up to 99% of residual product, cut water usage, and reduce cross-contamination risk — a growing priority in food and beverage production.
In food and beverage production, pipelines transport everything from fruit juices and dairy to sauces, syrups, and liquid chocolate. Each time a batch ends or a product changeover occurs, a significant amount of product remains trapped in the pipe — the so-called "line fill". In a typical plant, this residual volume can represent thousands of euros in lost product per day.
What Is Pigging?
Pigging is the practice of sending a close-fitting projectile — called a pig — through a pipeline to push out residual product. The pig is propelled by compressed air or water and travels from a launch station to a receive station, sweeping the pipe interior clean along the way.
The name comes from the early days of pipeline maintenance, when cleaning devices made a squealing noise as they passed through the pipe. Modern hygienic pigs are precision-moulded from FDA-approved elastomers and are designed for clean-in-place (CIP) compatibility.
The Scale of Product Loss
Consider a 100-metre pipeline with a 3-inch (DN80) bore. The line fill volume is roughly 500 litres. If that pipeline carries a product worth €2 per litre and undergoes two changeovers per shift, three shifts per day, the daily product loss is €6,000 — over €1.5 million per year from a single line.
Without pigging, this product is flushed to drain or diluted beyond recovery during CIP. With pigging, recovery rates of 95–99% are achievable.
How Pigging Recovers Product
- The pig is loaded into the launch station at the start of the pipeline
- Compressed air or liquid propels the pig through the line
- The pig pushes the residual product ahead of it into the receiving vessel
- At the receive station, the pig is captured and the pipeline is ready for CIP or the next batch
The entire sequence is automated and typically takes less than a minute per 100 metres of pipe.
Hygienic Design Requirements
In food and beverage applications, every component in the product path must meet strict hygienic standards. For pigging systems, this means:
- All wetted surfaces in stainless steel 316L with surface finish ≤ 0.8 µm Ra
- Pig material: FDA 21 CFR 177.2600, EC 1935/2004, USP Class VI
- CIP-compatible stations — no dead legs, full drainability
- 3-A Sanitary Standards or EHEDG certification
- ATEX options for applications with flammable products or atmospheres
Trinox Pigging Systems
Trinox, part of the Gulbinat group, has developed pigging systems specifically for hygienic process industries. Their systems feature single-pig and double-pig configurations, automatic pig detection, and integration with common process control systems (PLC/SCADA).
As the exclusive Trinox distributor in the Benelux, Tas & Company provides full project support — from pipeline survey and feasibility study to installation supervision and commissioning. We typically see payback periods of 6–12 months based on recovered product value alone.