Method and plant for production of a dairy-based product in pieces

A method for producing mozzarella in pieces, comprising steps of:

• heating a mixture by heating means (21) of a stretcher (2);
• forming a sheet (10) of said mozzarella by extrusion, said sheet comprising a first portion;
• the step of forming a sheet being realised by forming means (22) located downstream of the stretcher;
• thinning the thickness of the sheet in a calibrating station downstream of the forming means (22);
• cooling said first portion of the sheet (10);
• the step of cooling said first portion of the sheet (10) comprising a step of advancing said sheet (10) into a cooling tunnel (4), wherein air is an operating cooling fluid of the mozzarella, without having to immerse the mozzarella in water;
• the step of cooling the first portion of the sheet (10) comprising the step of cooling the first portion in contact with the air present in the tunnel for less than 3 minutes in order to bring it from a temperature of greater than 45° C. down to a temperature of lower than 25° C.;
• the step of cooling the first portion of the sheet (10) includes causing said first portion of the sheet (10) to transit on at least a group (41, 42, 43, 44, 45) of advancing belts which transit in the tunnel (4), the belts of said group (41, 42, 43, 44, 45) are located one above another;
• each of said belts defining, between two corresponding end rollers (46, 47), an upper trajectory (460) and a lower trajectory (470), the group (41, 42, 43, 44, 45) of belts comprising an overlying belt and an underlying belt;
• at the end of the upper trajectory (460) the overlying belt winds about one of said two end rollers (46, 47), laying the first portion of the sheet (10) by force of gravity onto the underlying belt which circulates in an opposite direction with respect to the overlying belt;
• the step of laying the first portion of the sheet (10) by force of gravity onto the underlying belt comprising a step of overturning the sheet (10) by turning a face of the first portion of the sheet (10) upwards which was facing downwards on the overlying belt;
• wherein the underlying belt is the lowermost belt of the group of belts;
• wherein, when the step of overturning occurs from the overlying belt to the underlying belt, the first portion of the sheet (10) is of a sufficient temperature to permit said overturning;
• obtaining shaped pieces of said mozzarella from said first portion of the sheet (10);
• batching the shaped pieces;
• packaging the shaped pieces of said mozzarella;
• the step of packaging comprising the step of inserting a plurality of shaped pieces together in a same wrapping, internally of the wrapping the shaped pieces of the mozzarella being in direct contact with one another.