Food Extrusion Unit

What we do

Industry Partnership

We work with food businesses in developing extruded products such as puffed snacks, breakfast cereals, pasta, and plant-based meat analogs. We specialize in recipe formulation and product analyzation. Interested? Contact us to discuss your ideas.

Research and Education

We offer training on extrusion principles and practices. Our lab will teach you how to develop extruded food products and process them properly. Find out about student research and career opportunities.

Products

Extruded products include ready-to-eat snacks, breakfast cereals, pasta, texturized-vegetable-protein, and pet food. The MSU extrusion lab currently offers testing services for pastas, snack puffs, and texturized-vegetable protein. We specialize in Montana-grown ingredients such as: lentils, chickpeas, and soy.

Extrusion Equipment at MSU

Bühler BCTM 20D Pilot Twin-Screw Extruder

Flour is fed to the extruder using a Bühler Micro Loss-in-Weight Scale. Bühler equipment is highly precise and manufactured in Uzwil, Switzerland.

Extrusion Program Manager, Sophia Seffrood, with the BCTM 20D Pilot Twin-Screw Extruder.

Micro Loss-in-Weight Scale

Allows for easy addition of vitamins, colorants, or flavoring agents. Throughput of up to 50 kg/hr.

Click on an image to view as a slideshow.

Sustainable waste management

Since we are a research facility, the food products we make aren't sold or consumed, and they inevitably become waste. Thanks to the MSU Office of Sustainability's Recycling Program, we are diverting 40 kg/week of food waste from the landfill and turning it into compost.

Group tour scheduling

To schedule a group tour (limit of 12 people) of the Extrusion Unit, contact Sophia at sensory@montana.edu.