Rethermalizer Standard Development

SCE is committed to the advancement of the food service industry and is part of a statewide team offering a food service qualifying product list that identifies the most-efficient commercial kitchen appliances within a specific appliance category. The qualifying appliances are eligible to receive incentives for their use. Currently, rethermalization (“retherm”) ovens are not listed as one of the appliance categories on the food service qualifying list. Furthermore, committee members determined laboratory test data were needed to create a new ASTM test standard, ASTM F 3216, Test Method for Performance of Rethermalization Ovens. Rethermalization ovens are heated cabinets used to reheat previously prepared, stored and chilled food product to serving temperature all while retaining the food product’s color, flavor, texture and nutrients2. Retherms are popular among schools, hospitals, prisons, and other institutional facilities that use centralized kitchens to mass produce food product that can be reheated for fast and easy service. Retherms have low emissions and, therefore, do not require a ventilation hood. As a result, retherms are increasingly popular due to lower upfront capital investment compared to a full commercial cook line. The main cavity is accessed by doors leading to a heated cabinet. They can be factory configured to hold pans or baskets depending on customer preference. The new ASTM test standard, ASTM F 3216, was developed, in part, by laboratory testing conducted at the SCE Foodservice Technology Center (FTC) through funding by SCE’s Emerging Technologies Program Technology Development Support subprogram project ET14SCE7010. Lab testing conducted at the FTC validated the ability to execute the standard by lab technicians, but also identified several areas of improvement. Based on this testing, the following improvements were recommended and adopted into the standard: -Modified cavity setpoint temperature from 350°F to 250°F -Modified initial start temperature of food product from 0 ± 5°F to 41 ± 5°F -Modified final cook temperature of food product from 165°F to 140°F -Changed food product from mac n cheese to 4 pound bag of mashed potatoes -Modified thermocouple placement from top-middle of bag to bottom-middle of bag -Added baskets (originally only accounted for hotel pans) -Modified placement of bags in baskets: changed from 2 bags perpendicular with basket to 2 bags parallel -Modified placement of thermocouple for basket testing/loading: change 1 thermocouple per bag/basket per shelf to 1 thermocouple per shelf rotating counterclockwise loading from top to bottom -Adjusted loading time per pan/basket: from 5 seconds to 7 seconds The test standard was ratified with the above changes by the ASTM F26 Food Equipment Committee in October 2016. The successful development of the new test standard for rethermalization ovens enables SCE to evaluate appliances within this specific appliance category. Finally, a qualified product list will be developed to identify appliances that might be eligible to receive incentives.