Cleaner Production Option in a Food (KIMCHI) Industry

In Kimchi (a salt-pickled and fermented food) manufacturing industry, the process of brining and rinsing the raw vegetable produces a vast amount of wastewater of high salinity. Instead of expensive and low-efficient conventional treatment system, brining wastewater reuse system was developed using hybrid chemical precipitation / microfiltration. In the microfiltration of chemically treated brining wastewater, comparison of flux, backwashing frequency and energy consumption was made between dead-end and crossflow filtration mode. The optimum location of neutralization step in this system was also discussed in connection with the micro filtration performance. The quality test of Kimchi prepared by the reuse system conformed the new approach was successful in terms of water/raw material (salt) savings and wastewater reduction.