Pioneering technology developed by a former ICI engineer is about to revolutionise the food and drink industry.

Protensive, which is based in Newcastle, has developed its "spinning disc" technology, already used in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, for use in food and drink production.

The company has worked with The Food Chain Centre of Industrial Collaboration (CIC), based in Leeds, and the Food Processing Faraday Partnership, to research the potential applications of the technology.

They include replacing methods of product mixing, preventing contamination during food and drink production and creating flavour systems for products such as sauces.

Dr Graham Clayton, commercial director of the Food Chain CIC, said: "Many of today's food and drink products are made using processes that are, in effect, the same methods we use in our kitchens at home, scaled up to factory size.

"The process begins with putting ingredients in giant bowls or vats, mixing them and often heating and reducing them, using mega-size cookers.

"The actions of stirring and heating are key - and on an industrial scale they cause constant problems - ensuring that mixing is thorough, temperatures are consistently correct and the finished food or drink comes out the same every time.

"And, while the food industry has embraced huge technological advances, these batch production methods have changed very little over decades."

Spinning disc reactor (SDR) technology was invented in the 1970s by Colin Ramshaw, a former ICI engineer and co-founder of Protensive, which is based at the Centre for Life laboratories, in Newcastle, and has another site at Wilton, on Teesside.

The technology works by passing liquids across the surface of metal discs, which can be set to spin, heat and cool at optimum speeds.

Protensive director Ian Henderson said the accuracy and speed with which ingredients can be mixed, the ability to strip water from substances, and the high temperatures that can be achieved, have made SDRs invaluable to the chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

"The Food Chain CIC's research has provided us with the evidence that we need to support the development of SDR for the food and drink industries," he said.

"We already have a number of projects under way with companies both large and small, looking at how the technology can replace existing parts of their production processes."

He said that the design of the spinning disc unit also means that it can be cleaned in seconds - enabling manufacturers to use the same equipment for any number of products or variations in quick succession.

Mr Henderson said: "So, just-in-time manufacture becomes possible, overproduction disappears and warehouse requirements are vastly reduced."