Drying of
Fruits & Vegetables

Drying fruits and vegetables determines color, aroma, nutrient content, texture, and shelf life. With HARTER heat pump drying systems, you gain access to an energy-efficient, hygienic, and reproducible solution that brings your products to the desired residual moisture content at moderate temperatures within a defined time – regardless of weather and season.

Fundamentals and practical examples of the method can be found in: Energy-saving drying with heat pump.
How HARTER develops customer-specific processes is shown in: How solutions for heat pump dryers are created.

In food processing, HARTER supports you from the selection of recipes and cutting forms (slices, pieces, cubes, shavings) and process control (air volume, air guidance, temperature, humidity) to integration into existing lines. For your specific application, you receive a tailored drying concept that measurably ensures quality and sustainably reduces costs.

For drying fruits & vegetables, HARTER uses a closed air circuit with integrated dehumidification. The process air is dried, heated, and recirculated over the product. This keeps temperature and relative humidity consistently low – promoting uniform drying to the core, preserving aroma and color compounds, and reducing oxidation.

Insights into the technical implementation and energy efficiency are provided in the article: Expanding Capacities with Heat Pump Dryers.

Compared to conventional hot air drying, low-temperature drying better preserves nutritional value: vitamins, secondary plant compounds, and delicate aromas remain more stable. At the same time, energy consumption and rejects decrease because the process operates independently of ambient air and is therefore plannable.

Typical applications range from apple and banana chips, berries, stone fruit, and citrus fruits to vegetables such as tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, carrots, mushrooms, or leafy greens. Herbs and cut greens also benefit from the gentle process control – volatile aroma components are preserved, the color appears fresh, and the texture becomes crispy instead of leathery. This way, you increase the marketability in snacks, ingredient mixes, muesli toppings, or convenience products.

Fruits and vegetables are microbiologically sensitive raw materials. The drying of fruits & vegetables with HARTER is therefore carried out without exhaust air in a controlled, closed system. This minimizes the risk of germ entry or cross-contamination and achieves reproducible results – regardless of weather and season.

How HARTER develops the optimal process control is demonstrated by: Technical Center.

Before the design, HARTER tests your original products in its own Technical Center: sectional image, bed depths, air flow (horizontal/vertical), temperature/humidity control and target residual moisture are precisely analyzed and documented. This results in a reliable database for system configuration and automation – from batch operation to continuous throughput. Whether you start small or produce larger volumes immediately, the systems are modularly scalable and can be adapted to increasing capacities.

A thematic overview of related industry applications can be found on the Industries page.

We dry with dry air and deliver it to the right places: A perfect interplay of air preparation and air guidance provides you with the best possible drying result.

Depending on the product form (slices, pieces, cubes, whole fruits, herbs), production volume, and desired final moisture content, HARTER configures the suitable solution:

• Tray dryers/Chamber dryers for flexible batches (Food Tray Dryers/Chamber Dryers)
• Belt dryers for continuous throughput (Food Belt Dryers)
• Drum dryers for bulk products and snack formats (Food Drum Dryers)

The systems can be integrated into existing lines – from pre-treatment to packaging – including recipe management, moisture/temperature monitoring, and automatic data acquisition.