Chaozhou Shengyang Machinery Co., Ltd

Sugar molds are the core components of candy molding, and their cleanliness directly affects the appearance, taste, and food safety of candies. If residual sugar residue and burnt substances are not thoroughly removed, they may not only cause burrs and missing corners in subsequent candy molding, but also breed microorganisms or carbonize at high temperatures, affecting product quality. When cleaning, it is necessary to consider the differences in the material (mostly stainless steel, food grade plastic, or silicone), structure (such as precision cavities, small patterns), and candy types (hard candy, soft candy, chocolate candy) of the sugar mold, and follow the principle of "safety, thoroughness, and no damage to the mold". Specific precautions are as follows:

1. Preparation before cleaning: laying a foundation for safety

Shutdown and power off to ensure no residual heat

Before cleaning, the candy forming machine must be completely shut down and the power must be cut off. The mold should be allowed to cool naturally to below 40 ℃ (no burning sensation when touched by hand) before operation - on the one hand, to avoid scalding of operators caused by high-temperature molds, and on the other hand, to prevent direct flushing of high-temperature molds (especially stainless steel molds) with cold water, which may cause deformation or cracking of the mold (structural damage caused by thermal expansion and contraction).

Disassembly and classification: avoid parts loss or confusion

If the mold is detachable (such as combination stamping mold, multi cavity injection mold), it needs to be disassembled in the order of "outside to inside, easy to difficult", and the mold body, fixing screws, positioning pins and other parts should be classified and placed (marked with tags or special storage boxes) to avoid misalignment or omission during subsequent assembly; For non removable integral molds (such as small silicone gummy molds), clean cloths should be utilized to cover the equipment circuits and transmission components around the mold to prevent cleaning solution seeping in and causing malfunctions.

Prepare specialized tools and cleaning agents: refuse contamination and damage

• Tool selection: Priority should be given to using soft tools, such as food grade nylon brushes (with moderate brush head hardness to avoid scratching the mold cavity), sponge cloths (with no shedding material to prevent fiber residue), and specialized mold cleaning shovels (made of plastic material to avoid metal shovels scratching the surface coating of the mold); It is strictly prohibited to utilize hard tools such as steel wire balls and sandpaper to avoid damaging the anti sticking coating or precision patterns of the mold.

• Cleaning agent selection: Food grade cleaning agents (such as food grade sodium hydroxide solution and food grade neutral detergent that comply with GB 14930.1 standard) must be utilized, with a concentration controlled at 0.5% -1% (too high can corrode molds, too low cleaning power is insufficient); It is strictly prohibited to utilize industrial grade cleaning agents (such as laundry detergent and degreaser), as their residual chemicals may contaminate candies and endanger food safety.

2. Cleaning process: precise step-by-step operation

Preliminary cleaning: Remove visible residues on the surface first

Utilize a dry nylon brush or sponge to gently wipe the surface and cavity of the mold with sugar residue and broken sugar blocks - this step requires "gentle operation", especially for molds with small patterns (such as cartoon shaped hard sugar molds), to avoid excessive force causing sugar residue to embed deep into the patterns, which may increase the difficulty of cleaning; For sugar residue with tight adhesion (such as residual solidified hard sugar after cooling), soak the mold in warm water at 40-50 ℃ for 1-2 minutes (to soften the sugar residue), and then clean it with a brush. It is forbidden to directly scratch or scrape it.

Deep cleaning: targeted treatment of stubborn residues

Select the appropriate cleaning method based on the mold material and candy type, with a focus on removing stubborn sugar stains and burnt substances inside the mold cavity:

• Stainless steel molds (commonly utilized for hard candy and milk candy): Place the mold in a pre prepared food grade cleaning solution (temperature 50-60 ℃), soak for 5-10 minutes (using a warm solution to enhance cleaning power while avoiding high temperature damage to the mold), and then utilize a soft bristled brush to clean the mold cavity one by one, paying special attention to the corners and seams of the mold (which are prone to residual accumulation); If there is any burnt material (such as carbonization residue caused by high sugar boiling temperature), it can be gently scraped off with a plastic cleaning shovel, and then repeatedly brushed with a brush dipped in solution until there is no visible residue.

• Food grade plastic/silicone molds (commonly utilized for gummies and QQ candies): These molds are made of soft materials and may have small pores, requiring "gentle cleaning" - dip a sponge in a diluted cleaning solution, gently wipe the surface and cavity of the mold, and avoid excessive rubbing that may cause deformation of the mold; After cleaning, rinse repeatedly 2-3 times with purified water or sterile water (temperature 30-40 ℃) to ensure that there is no residue of the cleaning agent (plastic/silicone can easily adsorb cleaning agents, and residue can affect the taste of candy).

• Chocolate candy mold (with anti stick coating): The residual cocoa butter chocolate is prone to solidify on the surface of the mold. It is necessary to soak the mold in warm water at 40-45 ℃ (close to the melting point of cocoa butter) for 3-5 minutes. After the cocoa butter melts, gently wipe it with a soft cloth; It is strictly prohibited to utilize cleaning agents (which may damage the anti sticking coating). If there are stubborn residues, they can be washed repeatedly with warm water and wiped dry with a dry cloth.

Disinfection treatment: ensuring food safety

After cleaning, the mold needs to be disinfected to kill any microorganisms that may grow (such as bacteria and mold), especially during continuous production. This step is essential:

• Common disinfection methods: Soak the cleaned mold in hot water at 80-85 ℃ for 10-15 minutes (thermal disinfection, suitable for all material molds), or spray the mold surface and cavity with food grade chlorine containing disinfectant water (such as sodium hypochlorite solution) with a concentration of 50-100ppm, let it stand for 5 minutes, and then rinse it clean with purified water (to avoid residual disinfectant water);

• Attention: Silicone molds have poor high temperature resistance. The hot water disinfection temperature should be controlled within 80 ℃, and the soaking time should not exceed 10 minutes to prevent mold aging and deformation; After disinfection, the mold should be inverted and drained of water to avoid the accumulation of water and the growth of bacteria inside the mold cavity.

3. Post cleaning treatment: Extend mold life

Thoroughly dry: prevent rust and mold

The disinfected mold needs to be thoroughly dried to avoid water residue causing problems:

• Stainless steel mold: You can first dry the surface moisture with a clean food grade cloth, and then put it in a drying oven at 50-60 ℃ for 15-20 minutes (the drying temperature should be lower than the heat resistance limit of the mold) to prevent rusting of the mold;

• Plastic/silicone molds: After drying with a cloth, place them in a ventilated and cool place to air dry naturally (avoid direct sunlight to prevent material aging). Do not utilize high temperature drying (which may cause mold deformation and discoloration).

Inspection and maintenance: timely repair of minor damages

After drying, carefully check the condition of the mold:

• Check if there are scratches or deformations in the mold cavity (if there are slight scratches on the stainless steel mold, food grade polishing paste can be utilized to gently polish and repair them; if there are cracks in the plastic/silicone mold, it needs to be replaced immediately to avoid burrs during candy molding);

• Check if the anti sticking coating (such as PTFE coating) of the mold is intact. If the coating falls off, it is necessary to promptly apply or replace the mold to prevent subsequent candy adhesion.

Storage: Avoid contamination and squeezing

Intact molds should be stored according to the principles of "classification, dust-proof, and no compression":

• Stainless steel molds: stackable storage, but a layer of clean food grade oil paper needs to be placed between the molds to avoid friction damage to the mold surface;

• Plastic/silicone molds: need to be stored separately flat or suspended, and stacking and squeezing are prohibited (to prevent mold deformation and affect cavity accuracy);

• All molds must be stored in a dry, ventilated, and odor free environment (away oil stains and chemicals), and regularly (such as weekly) checked for signs of mold and rust.

4、 Special precautions

Avoid 'excessive cleaning'

No need for frequent utilize of cleaning agents or high-temperature disinfection - after daily production, if there is only a small amount of sugar residue left in the mold, it can be rinsed with warm water and wiped with a soft cloth; Excessive utilize of cleaning agents can accelerate the aging of anti sticking coatings on molds, while frequent high-temperature disinfection may lead to material fatigue and shorten the service life of molds.

Targeted treatment of different candy residues

• Hard candy residue: Due to the low moisture content and high hardness of hard candy after solidification, it needs to be soaked in warm water to soften before cleaning. Hard scraping is prohibited;

• Soft candy residue: Soft candy contains colloids (such as gelatin) that are prone to sticking to molds. When cleaning, warm water and neutral cleaning agents should be utilized to avoid difficulty in removing the colloids after solidification;

• Chocolate residue: Simply melt cocoa butter with warm water, do not utilize cleaning agents to prevent damage to the mold's anti sticking layer.

Personnel operation standards

Cleaning personnel must wear food grade gloves (to avoid hand grease contamination of the mold) and be trained to be familiar with the mold structure - handle with care during disassembly, cleaning, and assembly, and do not drop or smash the mold (especially for precision cavity molds, slight collisions may cause cavity deformation and affect candy molding accuracy).