Onion Cleaning, Cutting, Drying, And Packaging Production Line

An onion washing, silcing, drying, and packaging production line is a continuous processing system that runs from fresh onion feeding to finished dried onion dice output. The core of the entire line lies in the coordination of four key stages: thorough peeling, uniform dicing, even drying, and suitable packaging. It is suitable for dehydrated vegetable factories, seasoning ingredient processing, and instant noodle seasoning packet suppliers.

Overall Process Flow

Material selection → De-stoning and peeling → Washing → Slicing → Rinsing and color protection → Dewatering → Drying → Cooling → Screening → Packaging

Core Equipment for Each Stage

Pre-processing Stage (Peeling and Washing)

Onion peeling is a processing challenge. Dry peeling uses a friction peeler or brush roller washing and peeling machine, which removes the outer dry skin through rotating brushes or friction drums with relatively low damage rates. After peeling, onions go through a bubble washing machine for tumbling and washing to remove residual impurities and mud. Some production lines are also equipped with a lifting feeder to connect the front and rear equipment and reduce manual handling.

Dicing Stage (Core Shaping Step)

Dicing quality directly affects the appearance of the finished product and drying efficiency. A vertical onion dicer feeds onions through a dial into vertical cutting blades, then cuts them into cube-shaped dice through disc shredding blades and cross-cutting blades. The cutting size is usually adjustable within the range of 4–20mm. The equipment's processing capacity is approximately 800–1,500 kg/h. The entire machine is made of SUS304 stainless steel, and the feed inlet is equipped with a micro switch to ensure operational safety. After cutting, the onion dice need to pass through a rinsing and color protection machine to inhibit enzymatic browning and maintain color.

Drying Stage (Determines Finished Product Quality)

Drying is the stage that accounts for the largest proportion of investment in the entire line. Fresh onions have a moisture content of about 82% and need to be dried to below 5%–8% for long-term storage. The mainstream solution is a multi-layer mesh belt dryer: onion dice are evenly spread on 3–6 layers of stainless steel mesh belts, and hot air vertically penetrates the material layer. The material turns and falls layer by layer, achieving continuous and uniform drying. The drying temperature is usually controlled at around 80°C, and the heat source can be steam, electricity, natural gas, or biomass. The daily processing capacity can reach the scale of 50 tons of fresh onions.

Packaging Stage (Adapts to Product Form)

Dried onion dice are granular materials, and packaging methods are flexible. For small packaging, a vertical granular packaging machine can be used, supporting small specifications of 29g and below, with accuracy of ±2–3g. For bulk or industrial raw materials, a mesh bag packaging machine can be used, which suits the breathable storage needs of onion dice.

Selection Reference

| Stage | Key Considerations | Reference Parameters |

| Peeling | Peeling rate and damage rate | Friction/brush roller type, processing capacity matching the production line |

| Dicing | Dice shape regularity, adjustable size range | Adjustable 4–20mm, output 800–1,500 kg/h |

| Drying | Temperature control accuracy, heat source conditions | Mesh belt type, around 80°C, discharge moisture 5%–8% |

| Packaging | Packaging specifications and degree of automation | Granular/mesh bag packaging, small-gram or bulk |

Selection Recommendations

When building an onion dicing and drying line, it is recommended to first clarify the daily processing volume of fresh onions and the target product form (specification and size of dried onion dice). If the dried product needs to be further processed into onion powder, a grinder and screening equipment can be added after the drying stage to form a complete production line from fresh onions to onion powder. Regarding the drying heat source, factories with steam conditions have lower operating costs, while those without steam conditions can consider natural gas or biomass hot air furnaces.

If you can provide the expected daily processing capacity and heat source conditions, I can help you further sort out the specific equipment specifications and capacity matching plan.