Energy efficiency of a confectionery plant – Case study

•Confectionery plant is one of energy intensive sector in food industry.•Some new indicators of specific energy consumption in processes were introduced.•Level of energy consumption depends on properties of materials used.•Indicators and coefficients proposed permit for a new complex approach.•They help with measurement of energy use by any food processing plant.

The characteristic features of confectionery plants are determined by the type and quantity of processed raw materials, the applied production technology, structure of technical equipment and degree of automation. The above factors contribute to variations in the consumption of different energy carriers. This paper analyzes the energy consumption profile of a randomly chosen confectionery plant. It describes technical and technological factors that can be applied in a detailed analysis of energy efficiency in the confectionery industry to facilitate the selection of the best available techniques. The discussed indicators can also be used to create a database that tracks the energy efficiency characteristics of confectionery plants.