Freezing and cooling food

Cryogenic solutions are widely used in the food industry. LIN and CO2 are gentle, effective ways of quickly lowering the temperature of food products to facilitate processing or preserve quality.

Did you know?

  • ● Nitrogen and carbon dioxide are inert gases, which also eliminates the risk of fire or explosion.
  • ● Liquid nitrogen (LIN) and carbon dioxide (CO2) are extremely effective cooling agents due to the low boiling point of LIN
    (–196 °C) and the low sublimation point of CO2 (–78.5 °C).
  • ● At –79 °C liquid carbon dioxide converts to solid, which is also known as dry ice, also known as dry ice. It is a flexible, easy-to-use cooling meedium. Learn more about our dry ice products

Effective bacterial control and high-quality preservation through cryogenic freezing

In the food industry, controlling bacterial activity is a major challenge. Chilling and freezing are effective weapons, which slow down bacterial growth by lowering temperatures and reducing the water activity. Rapidly chilling food products reduces the risk of bacterial growth even further. Cryogenic freezing maintains food quality by creating small, evenly distributed ice crystals. Quick-freezing at cryogenic temperatures is the perfect way to guarantee that small crystals are produced uniformly both inside and outside the product's cells. As a global leader in advanced food chilling and freezing technologies, we offer a full range of cryogenic freezers for in-line freezing and cooling. Our cryogenic solutions use carbon dioxide and nitrogen gases to lower product temperatures quickly, providing an effective and low-noise way of maintaining the precise temperature of chilled or frozen food products.

CRYOLINE® food freezers for maximum freezing performance

We offer a wide range of CRYOLINE freezers for food chilling, which meets the modern requirements for the industry. See more about the freezer types in the product datasheets under download at the bottom of this page.


Benefits of Linde cryogenic freezers:

  • ✓ Fast in-line freezing and cooling, thus preserving flavour
  • ✓ Higher quality of the frozen product compared with slower methods
  • ✓ Reduced drip loss on defrosting
  • ✓ Less dehydration resulting in a higher yield
  • ✓ Lower space requirements
  • ✓ Different types of freezers available to suit the requirements
    of different foodstuffs.

CRYOLINE pellet/moulded-shape freezer is the only cryogenic freezer designed to produce formed food shapes

CRYOLINE® food freezers

The CRYOLINE® CF is a cryogenic food cabinet freezer, suitable for small batch operations where food trolleys are manually loaded. It provides great flexibility for a variety of food products as well as short and long retention times. The freezer is available in several models and sizes and can operate with liquid nitrogen (LIN) or carbon dioxide (LIC).

The CRYOLINE® CS is a cryogenic self-stacking spiral freezer. Providing a high production capacity within a small space, it is suitable for a wide range of food products. The CRYOLINE CS is targeted at medium volume customers with typical achievable production rates of 1,200–2,400 kg/h (2,600–5,300 lb/h)*.

Easily switching between IQF (individually quick frozen) mode and standard flat belt tunnel freezer, the CRYOLINE® CW is a versatile multi-purpose  cryogenic freezer. It utilises the CRYOWAVE controllable vibration technology that provides adjustable agitation for optimum IQF foods, while also providing the ability to perform as a standard tunnel for many other food types of differing shapes and sizes. The freezer is available in various models and belt widths with typical achievable production rates of 500–2,700 kg/h (1,100–6,000 lb/h)*.

The CRYOLINE® MT is an in-line continuous tunnel freezer, which uses either liquid nitrogen (LIN) or carbon dioxide (LIC), depending on your food product and production needs. It is modular in design, enabling you to expand production by adding additional tunnels for a longer freezing production line. It is available in several models and belt widths with production rates of 200–2,500 kg/h (440–5,500 lb/h)*.

This is the only cryogenic freezer designed to produce formed food shapes. Processors interested in portion control of frozen ingredients for sauces, purees, soups and other liquid food products can achieve weight proportioning and unique logo imprints. The CRYOLINE® PE is perfectly suited for processors servicing the food service and ready meals industries as well as consumer markets.

For products which are difficult to handle, the CRYOLINE® SC in-line tunnel freezer uses a patented disposable foil belt. The unit can easily freeze or cool liquid and/or marinated products, or alternatively harden soft products (e. g. fillets of fish or chicken) prior to final freezing. Because the belt is disposable, it is possible to change products during the production cycle without having to clean the belt. Another advantage over mesh belts is that the foil is smooth, which is perfect for processing soft foodstuffs as it ensures no belt marks.

The CRYOLINE® SI is a nitrogen immersion freezer that conveys the food product through a nitrogen bath for quick IQF freezing. It is designed for high-volume IQF (individually quick frozen) applications, such as cooked poultry, diced meats and prawns. Immersion freezers expose the product directly to liquid nitrogen to get a rapid crust freeze to lock in product yield and reduce cooking losses. This ensures that there is little clumping and that only a few product particles stick to each other and the belt.

The CRYOLINE® TI is a high performance freezer utilising top-down impingement technology. This modular flat belt freezer delivers more than twice the heat transfer rate of standard tunnel freezers and reduces the required footprint by 40 %. Using liquid nitrogen (LIN) as a cooling agent, CRYOLINE TI is suitable for a wide range of non-IQF products with a typical capacity range of 1,500–2,500 kg/h (3,300–5,500 lb/h)*.

The CRYOLINE® XF is built for large capacities from 2,500 to 7,500 kg/h (5,500-16,500 lb/h)*. Its patented technology delivers twice the heat transfer rate of commercial spiral freezers, making it twice as powerful. The CRYOLINE XF  provides a smaller footprint, a higher production capacity and is more efficient than standard cryogenic spiral freezers. It is suitable for high temperature and high moisture products, e. g. cooked poultry, seafood and prepared meals. 

Get your food product tested at Linde Food Test Center

A nitrogen freeze test reveals the advantages of using nitrogen for your food production. We conduct tests with different parameters, calculates the optimal freezer settings, and determines which freezer type suits your needs and product the best. When we perform product tests, we always ensure data on how much of your product evaporates during cooling or freezing with nitrogen compared to cold air processes. We also provide cost calculations based on the test data and the available freezer types.