Dairy processing environments impose some of the most demanding requirements on food grade conveyor belts of any food manufacturing sector. Constant moisture exposure, acid and alkali cleaning regimes, temperature cycling between pasteurisation heat and refrigerated storage, and the need to maintain product integrity at every transfer point place clear demands on belt specification and construction.
Wire mesh conveyor belts — manufactured in food-grade stainless steel and designed around open-mesh hygienic principles — are the established choice for many dairy conveying applications.
Wire Belt Flat Flex
Advanced Packaging Systems (APS) is the New Zealand distributor for Wire Belt, whose range of stainless steel mesh conveyor belts covers the main dairy processing applications, from continuous cheese production lines through to filling and packaging conveyors for liquid dairy products.
Why Wire Mesh Conveyors Suit Dairy Environments
The fundamental property that makes wire mesh conveyors appropriate for dairy is their open structure. Unlike solid surface belts, woven wire mesh allows liquid — whey, brine, cleaning solution, and condensate — to drain freely through the belt without pooling on the product surface. This is a critical quality and hygiene requirement in cheese and butter production, where moisture management at the product surface directly affects yield, texture, and shelf life.
Wire Belt’s products are available in 304 and 316 stainless steel grades, resisting the acid and alkali cleaning agents used in dairy CIP procedures and withstanding continuous washdown without corrosion or structural degradation. The all-metal construction contains no fibres, fabric backing, or adhesives to trap moisture or harbour microbial contamination — providing a construction basis consistent with EHEDG hygienic design principles and the food safety requirements applied in dairy facilities processing products under official food safety assurance programmes.
Wire Belt Flex Turn
Key Dairy Processing Applications
Cheese Production
Cheese production involves multiple conveying stages, each with specific requirements. After coagulation and cutting, curd is conveyed to mould filling on wire mesh belts that allow whey to drain continuously as the curd consolidates. Pressed moulded blocks are then conveyed through salting or brining stages, where the mesh construction allows brine circulation across all product surfaces. During maturation and rind development, product is conveyed on open wire belts that provide airflow beneath the cheese — reducing unwanted condensation and promoting consistent, even rind formation. At the cutting and portioning stage, finished cheese is conveyed on belts that accept the cleaning regimes associated with cutting and packaging equipment downstream.
Butter and Cream Processing
Continuous butter production lines use wire mesh conveyors for product transfer and cooling between process stages. The open mesh construction allows chilled air to circulate around butter portions during cooling, ensuring even temperature reduction and consistent texture. Cut butter portions transfer directly to wrapping or packaging equipment on wire belt sections, with the smooth stainless wire surface reducing product adhesion and carry-over between belt and product.
Yoghurt and Cultured Products
Filled yoghurt pots, cups, and tubs are conveyed on wire mesh belts from filling equipment through setting tunnels, refrigeration, and on to secondary packaging. The firm, dimensionally stable nature of wire mesh supports containers accurately through setting and cooling stages, and the construction allows thorough washdown between product runs without belt degradation.
Filling and Packaging Lines
Dairy liquid products — milk, cream, flavoured beverages — pass through filling, capping, and labelling on conveyor lines that must meet food-grade hygiene standards, withstand frequent cleaning, and operate reliably at production speeds. Wire Belt mesh conveyors are used on these lines for container conveying, accumulation, and transfer between line sections, with the stainless construction providing the longevity and cleanability that production-critical conveying applications demand.
Wirebelt Flat Flex
Hygienic Design and Cleanability
Dairy processing relies on validated cleaning protocols, and conveyor systems must support — rather than compromise — those protocols. Wire Belt mesh conveyors are compatible with CIP cleaning systems: the open structure permits cleaning solution penetration across the full belt surface, including the underside of the belt and the surfaces of each wire strand. Belt construction avoids crevices, pockets, or dead zones where product residue can accumulate and cleaning solutions cannot reach.
The modular design of Wire Belt products minimises component count. Fewer parts mean fewer potential failure points, simpler maintenance procedures, and faster belt replacement when required. Sprockets, drive components, and return systems are available in food-grade materials, and the overall drivetrain construction supports the hygienic engineering principles required in dairy facilities processing products under official food safety assurance programmes.
Planning a processing or packaging project?
Speak with Advanced Packaging Systems about equipment selection, line integration, and local support in New Zealand.
- Local technical and commercial support in New Zealand.
- Obligation-free advice on equipment and line fit.
- Useful next steps, even if your project is still early-stage.
The Wire Belt Range for Dairy
Wire Belt’s product range offers several mesh configurations suited to specific dairy applications.
The Flat-Flex® belt is Wire Belt’s most flexible design. Its small, closely woven wire structure allows it to follow curves and negotiate corners at tight radii, making it suited to compact cheese moulding lines, small-footprint cooling conveyors, and any application where a curved or sinuous conveyor path is required. The fine mesh pitch is appropriate for product contact conveying of smaller cheese portions, cut product, and similar applications.
The Compact Grid belt provides greater rigidity and higher load capacity than Flat-Flex, suited to applications where heavier product loads or more aggressive processing conditions demand a more robust construction. It retains the open mesh drainage and hygiene properties of the Wire Belt range, with a flatter product contact surface that suits stable container conveying.
The Eye-Flex belt combines a wider mesh aperture with good flexibility. Its open structure provides maximum drainage and airflow — suited to brining, rind development, and cooling stages where liquid and airflow management is the primary conveying requirement rather than fine product support.
Compact-Grid™ Conveyor Belt
Dairy Conveyor Solutions in New Zealand
Advanced Packaging Systems supplies the Wire Belt range to dairy processors, co-manufacturers, and food production operations throughout New Zealand. APS provides equipment specification support, local service, and direct access to Wire Belt Company’s technical engineering team for application-specific conveyor design. Contact APS to discuss conveyor requirements for your dairy processing line.
