NEW EVENT! Cutting-edge Trends for Food Products at PACK EXPO Southeast
Discover all the latest packaging & processing solutions for food products at the all-new PACK EXPO Southeast in Atlanta, GA, March 10-12, 2025

Baggers Add Flexibility to Automated Pork Rind System

This pork rind line represents a seamless transition between processing and packaging, turning raw pig skin ingredient at the infeed into a finished packaged product at line's end, with fully automated connective tissue between processing and packaging.

Mac’s Chicharrones, Turkey Creek Snacks, and Pörq are Benestar’s own brands. The company also produces pork rinds as a CM/CP for private label.
Mac’s Chicharrones, Turkey Creek Snacks, and Pörq are Benestar’s own brands. The company also produces pork rinds as a CM/CP for private label.

Whether you know them as chicharrones, cracklings, or rinds, oil-fried pork skins are crispy, salty snacks that have been surging in the snack aisle thanks in part to a short and simple list of familiar, natural ingredients. They’re especially popular among keto diet adherents due to their punch of protein and zero-carbohydrate status when compared to potato- or rice-based snack chips.

The entire product family is produced from raw pork skin pellets, but there’s some nuance between varieties. Rinds are certainly crispy, but lighter, more airy, and smaller than other pig skin formats at about 1 x 1 in to 1 x 3 in. Cracklings and chicharrones are crunchier, require more of a bite, and consist of longer strips of 1 x 6 in to 1 x 9 in.  In the oil fryer, pellets are said to ‘pop’ or puff up, akin to corn kernels popping, to achieve the desired crispy texture. A dusting of dry ingredient seasoning finishes the fried and cooled snack before packaging, usually bagging or pouching.The continuous motion vf/f/s baggers handle a wide enough variety of rollstock materials, formats, and sizes to accommodate both Benestar’s own brands and private label.The continuous motion vf/f/s baggers handle a wide enough variety of rollstock materials, formats, and sizes to accommodate both Benestar’s own brands and private label.

California’s Benestar Brands, a producer of pork rinds, chicharrones, and cracklings for its own brands Mac’s Chicharrones, Turkey Creek Snacks, and Pörq, as well as CM/CP for private label, says it recently developed a highly efficient processing and packaging line for its bespoke rinds and cracklings. Installed in summer 2019, Benestar says this latest complete processing and packaging line from TNA Solutions improved the manufacturer’s product quality tenfold while significantly reducing energy use and enhancing efficiency.

“TNA Solutions’ experts have a deep understanding of our industry, while being open to listening to our specific challenges and finding out-of-the-box solutions. The accommodation of our specific needs, from footprint restrictions and frying demands to intricate seasoning, helped facilitate our partnership with TNA and develop an excellent product to satisfy every pork fan,” says Jose Gomez, chief technical officer at Benestar.

With a loyal following of label-reading consumers, many of whom aligned with the natural, wholesome, and nutritional food movements, Gomez knows he has to deliver consistently high-quality product. Investing in automation technology helped the company to extend snack shelf life, while improving the quality with an eye on continuous improvement.

TNA had a hand in optimizing processing and packaging from the outset, with the pork rinds and cracklings being fully tested at its technical center facility in Texas prior to the equipment purchase with a focus on consistent texture, seasoning, and flavor. Benestar says TNA’s guidance and technical support throughout the manufacturing process ensured the product could be brought to market quickly and efficiently.

“Our partnership with Benestar Brands has been very exciting and has fueled the engineering innovation of our team,” adds Adam Holloway, TNA regional sales manager, North America. “Pork rinds have very different product characteristics to traditional snacks we have been working with, such as potato and tortilla chips. We brought the years of processing experience in terms of treating food products in oil baths, while Benestar Brands contributed specific application knowledge—two key ingredients for a successful outcome.”

Starting upstream at the fryer

Manual infeed to the packaging line consists of 20-lb corrugated cases of raw pork skin pellets that are removed from pallets, opened, and poured into a hopper that feeds an incline conveyor. From there, the pellets get a short ride in a TNA roflo V M3 distribution conveyer, a vibratory conveyor that separates full-sized pellets from the so-called ‘fines,’ and feeds the preferred pellets into the fryer.

The system uses a TNA batch-pro 12 fryer that reduces rejects to less than 3%, while a unique fryer design minimizes oil use, contributing to both product and material savings. The fryer system also provides direct-fire heating for improved energy efficiencies and lower operating costs. And thanks to a three-stage oil filtration system, the continuous frying technology with submerged guide-belt conveyor ensures efficient oil management and turnover, eliminating the need to discard oil daily after every single production run, saving costly material. The new fryer also lowers free fatty acid (FFA) levels, enabling nutritionally appealing, consistent end product that tastes great and has a desirable color and texture. Stakeholders say this unique oil management and filtration system say hadn’t been done prior to this installation. Here’s how it works.A TNA batch-pro 12 fryer reduces rejects to less than 3%, while a unique fryer design minimizes oil use, contributing to both product and material savings.A TNA batch-pro 12 fryer reduces rejects to less than 3%, while a unique fryer design minimizes oil use, contributing to both product and material savings.

Since the raw pork skin pellets contain fat, they release their own oil when heated in the fry oil. That means this added oil needs to be removed from the system on occasion, and all the while, FFA buildup can occur. These conditions make oil and sediment management key. The fryer includes a sediment belt that runs along the bottom of the fryer pan, scraping off discardable particulates and depositing them into the filtration system. That system filters the oil, redistributes the rendered lard back into the system if it’s needed, or into a storage tank if not required. The undesirable particulate caught in the filters is disposed of outside of the fryer.

Videos from TNA Solutions
Back to Basics: Understanding Conveyors for Food Processing
Discover how modern conveyors enhance food processing—boost efficiency, ensure safety, and save space. Explore the latest tech and tips to optimize your operations.
learn more
Back to Basics: Understanding Conveyors for Food Processing
INTRODUCING! The Latest Trends for Food Products at PACK EXPO Southeast
The exciting new PACK EXPO Southeast 2025 unites all vertical markets in one dynamic hub, generating more innovative answers to food packaging and processing challenges. Don’t miss this extraordinary opportunity for your business!
Read More
INTRODUCING! The Latest Trends for Food Products at PACK EXPO Southeast