The meat manufacturer Kotivara is renowned in Finland and Sweden for its high-quality salami products. The production of first-class products demands correspondingly powerful technical equipment. This requirement is done justice to by – among other things – the automatic Tipper Tie SV4800 double clipper.
Oulu is located on the Baltic coast. Measured according to inhabitants, it is Finland’s fifth largest city. Since opening its doors in 1943, the family-run sausage manufacturer Kotivara has been at home in Oulu. The name Kotivara can be translated approximately as “storage in the household”. “This means that one carries important foods around in case of an emergency,” explains Tomi Tanayama, Kotivara production and quality manager.
Tanayama summarizes the essential element for Kotivara in one word: quality. “We are a small company, which means we must make very tasty, high-quality products.” And in actual fact, the company produces an excellent range of spicy salami products, especially the so-called “Russian” salami. According to the company’s website, it offers many varieties such as pepper, garlic and chili sausage, an original St. Petersburg recipe. “Our products have a long curing time of up to five weeks on average. Thus, they are very dry and have the highest quality,” summarizes Tanayama. “And they are very tasty as well. My staff and I eat a lot of them – this is our own quality assessment!”
In Finland and Sweden, end-consumers find Kotivara products in their local supermarkets. They recognize the savory salamis from their distinctive orange packaging. For decades, orange has been Kotivara’s traditional code color for salami.
Proven clipping technology
At some point, successful meat producers reach the point when their throughput threatens to slow down their growth. They then have two options: increase their capacity or lose their dynamics. Three years ago, Kotivara determined that it would have to significantly expand its clipping capacity. It thus began looking for a new clipping system. “When we invest in a new machine, we investigate many aspects,” recalls Tomi Tanayama. “Quality is crucial, because the appearance of our products is important for our customers.”
After considering several suppliers, Kotivara took a familiar path. “Due to the good ratings by other users, we decided on the Tipper Tie SV4800 clipper,” says Tanayama. “It was also very similar in design to our old SV4600, which we still use. We tested other brands before buying, and the SV4800 turned out to be the best alternative for us.” Tomi Tanayama appreciates the SV4800’s user-friendliness. In terms of its capacity improvement, he quantifies its increase in speed at around 10–20 percent.
Tipper Tie describes the SV4800 as the fastest voiding separator for U clips. It closes synthetic, fiber and collagen casings in the caliber range of up to 160 mm and at up to 120 cycles per minute. The voiding separator system enables Kotivara to process ham products, which is very useful for the company. In addition to many salami products, Kotivara also produces cold smoked hams.
The finest cutter technology
Since 2000, Kotivara has also relied on another Tipper Tie system, which is an essential part of its production process: the Swopper 550 cutter. Even today, fifteen years later, the 550 liter cuter from Tipper Tie/Alpina consistently delivers the same precise emulsions crucial for making premium salami. “It is a high-quality, reliable and user-friendly machine that still functions well after all these years,” says Tanayama. The Swopper 500 cutter makes a huge contribution to Kotivara’s overall capacity – at maximum 20,000 kg per day, according to Tanayama.
When Tomi Tanayama rates Tipper Tie as a supplier, his impressions are influenced by what he and his employees experience every day – after years of cooperation with the company. In areas such as product quality, problem solving and technical support, he gives the company consistently good ratings. He is happy to recommend Tipper Tie to his colleagues. “Kevin Alpina (the Tipper Tie sales representative for Finland) has been our partner for 30 years. We have a long, successful history with him.”