Miller Magazine Issue: 138 June 2021

72 TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM MILLER / june 2021 Insufficient drying and poor storage conditions can bring about grain losses caused by the combined ac- tion of moulds, insects, rodents and other pests. Given the increasing food demand of an increasing population, reducing the postharvest loss is of high importance for global food security. Pests in the grain and food process- ing industries are a big challenge. Due to perfect en- vironmental development conditions in food processing plants, it is extremely difficult to control pests efficiently especially in a tropical climate. Switzerland-based Wingmen Group, partnering with Termico GmbH, offers innovative heat treatment technol- ogy for the food processing industries. They developed a heat treatment solution to the needs of the food manu- facturing industry as an alternative to the traditional pest control methods without using chemicals or poisons. Andreas Hummel, Chief Technology Officer at Wing- men Group, answers our questions on the importance of pest control in the milling industry and the advantages of the heat treatment applications in the plants. First of all, could you please provide us with some brief background information on Wingmen Group and its services? Wingmen Group was founded in 2018 as a joint ven- ture between experts in the food processing and flour milling industry. Our core activities are grouped into 3 categories: Project Consultation: We consult customers accord- ing to their needs from the first project idea until the 24/7 daily operation. With our experience, we support cus- tomers around the globe on their projects. If investment estimation, concept studies, RFQ preparation, process “During the last year, we have visited several flour mills within the European region and saw their challenges with pest management and the fumigation of their plants. That’s why we decided to open a Termico hub in Germany from where we offer our heat treat- ment services to customers within Europe…We believe with our services and solutions with focus on energy and food safety, we are on the right track. For the end consumers and Fridays for future generation, food safety and sustainability are getting more and more important. The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated that trends in our perspective.” A strong partnership for pest control in the food industry Andreas Hummel Chief Technology Officer Wingmen Group Switzerland