Where to Buy the Best Milk Pasteurizers in Nairobi
Are you in the milk value addition business or intend to venture into one? A milk pasteurizer is one of the critical equipment you need to succeed in this business. In addition to that it’s a requirement by Kenya Dairy Board to sell pasteurized milk. Before we share where to buy the best milk pasteurizers in Nairobi let’s first look at a few important things.
It’s a well-known factor that milk is a highly perishable commodity. The handling of the same also highly increases the chances of making the milk to go bad quickly. This is because of the many risk factors involved when milk is handled by different persons and at different stages and environments. For this reason there’s need to ensure the risk factors are reduced and one of the best ways apart from hygiene and cold preservation is pasteurizing the milk.
What is pasteurization?
Pasteurization is the process of treating foods like milk or juice with mild heat of less than 100 0C to eliminate pathogens that cause food to get spoilt. This extends the shelf life of the food by destroying or deactivating the pathogens responsible. Pasteurization also reduces the risk of disease that might come as a result of consuming these foods without pasteurization. However it’s important to note that pasteurization does not kill bacteria spores. You need a second pasteurization also known double pasteurization to extend the milk shelf life.
What is a milk pasteurizer
A milk pasteurizer is basically an appliance/equipment that is used to heat milk to a certain required heat level so as to prevent milk getting spoilt quickly and as result reduce its shelf life.
How milk pasteurizers works
Pasteurizers need a source of heat to heat the substances inside. However the process is not direct heating as this can affect the taste and quality of the milk. That’s why pasteurizers have a triple wall where water is heated which in turn heats the inner wall that transmits the heat to the milk being heated. The same case with steam pasteurizers as described below. Between the middle wall and the outer wall id fibre insulation that protects heat from the outer wall which can burn someone who comes into contact with it.
Milk pasteurizers work by applying a controlled amount of heat for a specific time to milk, which is a process named after its inventor, Louis Pasteur. The purpose is to eliminate pathogenic (disease-causing) microorganisms and significantly reduce spoilage organisms without substantially affecting the milk’s nutritional value or flavor.
The general principle involves three key steps: Heating, Holding, and Cooling.
Common Pasteurization Methods
There are several time-temperature combinations used commercially, with the continuous flow method being the most common for high volumes:
| Method | Acronym | Temperature | Time | Result |
| High-Temperature, Short-Time | HTST (or Flash) | () | 15 seconds | Standard refrigerated milk, shelf life of 2-3 weeks. |
| Low-Temperature, Long-Time | LTLT (or Batch) | () | 30 minutes | Often used for smaller batches or specialized products like cheese milk. |
| Ultra-High Temperature | UHT | () | 2–4 seconds | Sterilizes the milk, allowing it to be stored unrefrigerated for months in aseptic packaging. |
How Continuous Flow Pasteurizers Work (HTST)
The most common industrial method uses Plate Heat Exchangers (PHEs), which is a highly efficient, continuous flow process:
- Regeneration (Pre-Heating): Cold raw milk () is pumped into the regenerator section of the PHE. It flows past already-pasteurized hot milk, which is simultaneously flowing in the opposite direction. Heat transfers from the hot milk to the cold incoming milk, warming it up (e.g., to ) while cooling the outgoing milk. This step is crucial for energy efficiency. See the working principle of plate heat exchangers.
- Heating: The pre-heated milk is sent to the heating section, where it flows past hot water or steam-heated plates. The milk quickly reaches the required pasteurization temperature, typically .
- Holding: The heated milk then flows into a holding tube (a long, insulated pipe) where the flow rate is precisely calculated to ensure every particle of milk is held at the required temperature () for the minimum necessary time (15 seconds).
- Flow Diversion: A sensor at the end of the holding tube checks the milk’s temperature.14 If the milk is even slightly below the target temperature, a Flow Diversion Valve (FDV) automatically diverts the milk back to the raw milk tank to be re-processed.
- Regeneration (Pre-Cooling): The successfully pasteurized milk flows back through the regenerator, giving up its heat to the incoming raw milk, and is cooled significantly (e.g., to ).
- Cooling/Chilling: Finally, the milk flows through the cooling section, where it is chilled rapidly (using cold water or a refrigeration unit) down to . This rapid cooling stops any remaining bacteria from multiplying and is essential for preserving quality.
- Packaging: The cold, pasteurized milk is immediately packaged into clean, sterile containers to prevent recontamination.
This process ensures that a reduction of harmful bacteria is achieved, making the milk safe for consumption.
If you’d like to see a visual explanation of the process, you can watch Understanding Milk Cooling Tanks: Operation, Components, Types, to Preserve the Cold Chain.
Types of milk pasteurizers
There are three types of milk pasteurizers we make; electric which is most common, gas and steam pasteurizers. Therefore when considering where to buy the best milk pasteurizers in Nairobi, you need to know how each operates for you to make an informed decision.
Lets look at each of them below:
Electric pasteurizer:
An electric pasteurizer basically uses electricity to produce heat. The heat comes from electric heating elements similar to your electric cooker in your kitchen. The elements then heat water which then heats up the inner wall of the pasteurizer and then heat the milk inside the pasteurizer.
Gas pasteurizer
A gas pasteurizer on the other uses gas as it source of heat. The gas heats the water in the inner wall which in turn heats the milk.
Steam pasteurizer
A steam pasteurizer uses steam as its source of heat. The steam pasteurizer is faster compared to the other types of pasteurizers. However you need a reliable source of steam and it’s basically more expensive than the rest and also considering you need a steam generator it means you incur more.
The advantage is that it’s more reliable for bulk productions that require faster processes. Also if you can manage to build a reliable wood steam generator where you have abundance of wood at low or no cost it becomes cheaper to run than the others.
Where to buy the best milk pasteurizers in Nairobi
Saset is a leading manufacturer of dairy equipment like pasteurizers in Kenya. We are therefore the ideal place to buy the best milk pasteurizers in Nairobi or anywhere else in the country. We have experienced technicians who know how to make the right pasteurizer for you.
Our products meet the highest quality standards as required and are delivered within the agreed time frame.
Have you been wondering where to buy the best milk pasteurizers in Nairobi? You have come to the right place. Saset is the most preferred service provider for buying the best milk pasteurizers not only in Nairobi but also in Kenya as a whole. Our work speaks for itself considering the repeat customers and referrals we get form our past clients.
Get in touch with us today for a quotation or just to inquire more.
I sent a whatsapp message and got no reply. Disappointed!
hello Maggy our apologies. kindly lt us know which machine you were interested in
I need the cheapest ATM Machine. I am in Bomet County. How much should that cost me including installation?
Kindly share the price of a small electric pasturizer.
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Do you loaned your products
Hello Evans No we don’t
but reach us on 0726747403/0101747447 we can come up with a plan.