(19)

&  
(11) EP 2 401 921 A1
(12) EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION

(43) Date of publication: (51) Int Cl.:

04.01.2012 Bulletin 2012/01 A21D 13/00 (2006.01) A21C 5/00 (2006.01)
A21D 2/26 (2006.01)
(21) Application number: 10168242.5

(22) Date of filing: 02.07.2010

(84) Designated Contracting States: • De Acutis, Rodolfo

AL AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB York, Yorkshire Y026 4WX (GB)
GR HR HU IE IS IT LI LT LU LV MC MK MT NL NO • Leadbeater, Richard
PL PT RO SE SI SK SM TR York, Yorkshire YO91 1 XY (GB)
Designated Extension States: • Powell, Hugh
BA ME RS York, YOrkshire YO91 1 XY (GB)
• Coe, Stephen
(71) Applicant: Nestec S.A. Minksip, Yorkshire YO51 9JF (GB)
1800 Vevey (CH)
(74) Representative: Rossand, Isabelle
(72) Inventors: Nestec S.A.
• Arrachid, Abdessamad CT-PAT
59000 Lille (FR) Avenue Nestlé 55
1800 Vevey (CH)

(54) Method and apparatus for making a low density wafer product

(57) The present invention relates to the production of at most 0.16 g/cm3, and with sufficient strength to be
of wafers and more particularly to the use of a batter able to remove them from the wafer baking plates.
aerating system to obtain wafers with an effective density
EP 2 401 921 A1

Printed by Jouve, 75001 PARIS (FR)

 EP 2 401 921 A1

Description

Technical field of the invention

5 [0001] The present invention relates to the production of wafers and more particularly to a method for aerating the
batter to maintain an aerated structure of wafers during their production.

Background of the invention

10 [0002] In International Journal of Food Science and Technology 41, p.569-576 (2006), Ismail S. Dogan defines a
wafer as low-moisture-baked foods being formed from a batter and baked between hot plates. It is further disclosed that
the quality of wafer sheets is mainly controlled by flour property, water level and temperature, mixing action, baking time
and temperature. The quality of the wafer is a result of attributes of the batter such as the density, viscosity, holding time
and temperature, and by properties of the wafer such as weight, surface colour, fragility and moisture content. The study
15 concludes that wafers have little in common with other types of biscuits in regard to the formulae and processing, and
that water level and gluten content are important for obtaining a high-quality wafer sheet.
[0003] Duncan Manley disclose in the book "Technology of biscuits, crackers and cookies" (p.296, 3rd Ed., Woodhhead
Pub. Ltd.) that creation of gas cells in gelatinised starch is most important in wafer manufacture. Although bubbles of
air are included during batter mixing most of these float out of the batter before it is deposited onto the plates. If the
20 conditions are such that insufficient time is allowed for the bubbles to leave the batter it could be that the density of the
batter changes during use and this will affect the baked sheet weights in terms of giving variable and uncontrolled texture.
He further states that chemical aeration is usually achieved with sodium bicarbonate or ammonium bicarbonate or a
mixture of the two. Ammonium bicarbonate is particularly effective. Experience has shown that attention to the combination
of batter consistency and ammonium bicarbonate level is the best way to control batter spread and wafer sheet weight.
25 Increasing the amount of these aeration chemicals increases the aeration, but again the texture of the wafer will be un-
processable above a certain level, by which time the distinct and unpleasant off-flavour given by these chemicals becomes
unpleasant and unpalatable for a foodstuff. The use of yeast as a method of aeration by the creation of carbon dioxide
in the batter during fermentation is steeped in tradition. Batter standing time and suitable temperatures to allow multi-
plication of the yeast are not usually very practical in modern mixing and batter-handling systems, especially when
30 producing wafer on an industrial scale. Yeast is now rarely used in batter recipes.
[0004] It is known that adding extra water to a wafer batter mix will reduce the effective density of a wafer sheet. In
the process of baking any wafer from water based batter, when the batter is heated the water turns to steam, the steam
forms bubbles in the mix and these bubbles then form the cavities/cells in the wafer structure. The more water there is
in a batter, the more steam is generated, and the steam generates more cavities/cells in the final wafer resulting in the
35 batter having a reduced density. The outer layers of the wafer are also thinner which gives the wafer a lighter texture.
Low density wafers give a lightness and crispiness to some wafer products that is desirable to the consumer.
[0005] However, there is a lower limit to the effective density of finished wafer that this method makes. As more and
more water is added, the structure of the cavities/cells that are generated becomes less uniform throughout the wafer
as the process of the formation of the cells by the steam is not well regulated or controlled. A wafer made in such a way
40 is fragile due to the irregular cell structure and large cells that extend through the wafer.
[0006] Additionally, as more water is added to the batter mix, it is more difficult to control the process and bake wafers
of consistent quality. Another added complication is that, if more water is added to the batter, then the viscosity of the
batter decreases and it becomes difficult to handle and deposit a low viscosity liquid onto the baking plates. Unwanted
dripping of the batter will occur at the point of deposition causing waste and oven fires.
45 [0007] The result of these methods of producing very light wafers through the use of high dilution or high addition of
aeration chemicals wafers is an inhomogeneous content of cavities/cells which reduces robustness and causes breakage
when subjected to further handling, such as simple removal from the baking plate.
[0008] Aeration by these well-known methods therefore has its limits before the quality of the wafer in terms of texture
and flavour is compromised, and also becomes too fragile to handle in the industrial process, such as simple removal
50 from the baking plate. Low density wafers of density <0.16g/cm3 are therefore not known in existing technology.

Summary of the invention

[0009] Accordingly, one aspect of the invention relates to a method for the production of a wafer, the method comprises
55 the steps of:

(i) providing a batter mix comprising at least flour and water;

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 EP 2 401 921 A1

(ii) subjecting the batter mix to an aeration treatment obtaining an aerated batter mix;

(iii) optionally subjecting the aerated batter mix to mixing;

5 (iv) feeding the mixed and aerated batter mix to a heated baking surface through a batter depositor; and

(v) baking the mixed and aerated batter mix to obtain a wafer;

wherein the aeration treatment in step (ii) is down-stream from any direct pumping of the method.
10 [0010] Another aspect of the present invention relates to an apparatus for the production of a wafer which comprises:

(i) a storage vessel comprising a batter mix;

(ii) an aeration device responsible for an aeration treatment;

15
(iii) a batter feed pump for providing the batter mix from the storage vessel to the aeration device;

(iv) a batter depositor for depositing the aerated batter mix onto a heated baking surface.

20 [0011] Yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide a wafer having:

(i) a breakage force of at least 1N;

(ii) an effective density of at most 0.16 g/cm3 when measured at 20°C.

25
Brief description of the figures

[0012] Figure 1 shows a schematic example of an apparatus for producing a low effective density wafer.
[0013] The present invention will now be described in more detail in the following.
30
Detailed description of the invention

[0014] As mentioned it is of interest to provide a method for obtaining robust wafer, and wafers as such, which do not
break when subjected to further handling, such as simple removal from the baking plate, even at low densities, and
35 which also do not suffer from distinct off-flavour caused by added aeration chemicals or increased use of yeast in the
recipe.
[0015] To lower the effective density of a wafer, one will need to reduce the amount of flour deposited on the plate
whilst maintaining the complete wafer shape in the baking mould. The current technology solves this problem by adding
more water to the batter mix (diluting the batter), by increasing the concentration of the chemical leavening agents such
40 as sodium bicarbonate or ammonium bicarbonate or by using yeast or by any combination of these.
[0016] The conventional technology teaches an aerated structure in the wafer, wherein the aeration is created during
the moment of baking, i.e. once the batter hits the heated baking surface. This is obtained by the steam generated within
the baking mould. Alternatively aeration is achieved by chemical leavening agents, the action of which is set off by the
heat of the baking plate or yeast, both of which leave the wafer with different off flavours. Furthermore, it is believed that
45 the steam generated from the added water and the high pressure between the baking plates, at the moment of baking,
destroys any existing bubbles in the wafer batter.
[0017] The inventors of the present invention have surprisingly found that the pre-existence of bubbles in the wafer
batter leads to the formation of a more homogenous distribution of cavity/cell and/or more homogenous size of the
cavities/cells in the wafer. The effect of the more homogenous distribution and/or size of the cavities/cells in the baked
50 wafer makes the wafer much stronger compared to a conventionally baked wafer with the same effective density. This
allows one to make complete wafers of a lower effective density than ever before, and still be able to remove them from
the wafer baking plates.
[0018] The cellular structure can be further strengthened using known stabilisers such as starch, modified starch,
gums such as locust bean gum, guar gum, gum acacia, tragacanth, xanthan, karaya, gellan, tars, cellulose and cellulose
55 derivatives, pectin or gelatin, maltodextrins, gelling agents such as alginates or carageenan, proteins or protein sources
such as albumins, casein, caseinates, milk powders or whey powders.
[0019] However, in practice it is very difficult to use the beneficial effect of bubbles in the batter. This is because in
conventional baking equipment, a lobe-type deposition pump is placed at the end of the line, and this type of pump is

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found to destroy the bubbles in the aerated batter. Thus, by having the aeration treatment in step (ii) down-stream from
any direct pumping, such as the lobe-or impellor-type deposition pump, it may be possible to avoid that bubbles introduced
into the wafer batter are destroyed during the deposition. By direct pumping we mean pumping by a lobe pump or impellor
pump or progressive cavity pump or diaphragm pump or peristaltic pump or gear pump.
5 [0020] The second problem preventing the inclusion of aeration in wafer batter prior to baking is that in most conventional
wafer baking equipment the wafer baking plates are individually moving, with spaces between, so that the deposition
has to go intermittently (start at beginning of plate, stop at end of plate). To avoid depositing batter between the plates,
the deposition pump has to work intermittently. To maintain consistent aeration however, the pressure of the system
must remain constant which requires the pumps to run continuously. Therefore a solution to this is required whereby
10 the aeration of batter is continuous yet the deposition of the aerated batter can be started and stopped in a controlled
manner. Whilst more diluted batters will also drip between plates causing waste and oven fires, aeration of the batter
increases the viscosity of the batter, removing this issue.
[0021] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the method is a conventional wafer baking oven of moving
plates.
15 [0022] To control the process of deposition onto the baking plate, so that the batter may only deposited on the baking
plates and not in between, a piston accumulator can be introduced.
[0023] This piston accumulator works as a buffer system which introduce breaks in the deposition of aerated batter
onto the hot baking plates, while the pumps (e.g. deposition pump, batter pump, etc.) continuously pumps the batter.
The use of a piston accumulator results in a pumping process which is kept continuous even though the deposition is
20 intermittent, thereby maintaining the aeration of the batter.
[0024] The present invention relates to a method for the production of a wafer, the method comprises the steps of:

(i) providing a batter mix comprising at least flour and water;

25 (ii) subjecting the batter mix to an aeration treatment obtaining an aerated batter mix;

(iii) optionally subjecting the aerated batter mix to mixing;

(iv) feeding the mixed and aerated batter mix to a heated baking surface through a batter depositor; and
30
(v) baking the mixed and aerated batter mix to obtain a wafer;

wherein the aeration treatment in step (ii) is down-stream from any direct pumping of the method.
[0025] In one embodiment of the present invention, there is no direct pumping of the batter mix after the batter mix
35 has been subjected to the aeration treatment.
[0026] In another embodiment of the present invention, the aeration treatment is just before the batter reaches the
batter depositor, such as within 5 minutes before deposition onto the heated baking surface, such as in the interval of
5 seconds to 4 minutes before, preferably within 2 minutes before, such as in the interval of 10-60 seconds before,
preferably within 60 seconds before, more preferably within 30 seconds before, and most preferably within 15 seconds
40 before depositing onto the heated baking surface. In an embodiment of the present invention, the aeration treatment
may form part of the batter deposition.
[0027] As mentioned, direct pumping of the foam or aerated batter will destroy the cavities/cells in the batter and
therefore in the wafer, or at least cause undesirable - in terms of consistent batter quality - inhomogeneous distribution
of the size distribution of the cavities/cells in the batter and therefore in the wafer. Hence, in still another embodiment
45 of the present invention, the method does not involve any direct pumping of the aerated batter mix and/or any direct
pumping of the aerated primary foam.
[0028] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the aeration treatment involves preparation of a primary
foam.
[0029] In one embodiment of the present invention, the aeration treatment involves the use of a medium to high-shear
50 mixer with an aerating agent.
[0030] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the primary foam comprises a foaming agent and water.
In a more preferred embodiment, the foaming agent is selected from the group consisting of a protein containing milk
composition, such as sodium caseinate or HYFOAMA, cellulose, wheat proteins and albumens.
[0031] In one embodiment of the present invention, the primary foam may be prepared by pumping a foaming agent
55 and water through a "Mondomix" mixing head. The liquid phase (foaming agent and water) and a gas phase merge at
the inlet of the mixing head and are homogenized with accurate flow control under controlled pressure. The Mondomix
mixing head is the world standard, and consists of a rotor and stator both fitted with intermeshing pins, which provide,
unlike other systems available, constant sheer to the product. This results in better temperature control and controllable

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 EP 2 401 921 A1

bubble size distribution.

[0032] Preferably, the primary foam has a foam overrun above 100%, such as above 150%, e.g. above 200%, such
as above 300%, e.g. above 400%, such as above 600%, e.g. above 800%, such as above 1000%.
[0033] In the present context the term "overrun" refers to the volume increase, from the change of phase from liquid
5 to foam and is defined in the following formula:

10 [0034] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the gas merging with the liquid phase at the inlet of the
Mondomix mixing head is selected from the group consisting of helium, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, air and argon.
[0035] The present invention is illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 depicts an
apparatus for the production of a low density wafer. Referring to the drawing, a storage tank (10) for a batter mix is
provided with a feed pump (11). A storage vessel (12) for a solution of one or more foaming agents may be provided
15 with a dosing pump (13) adapted to run at the same time as the feed pump (11). The solution may be pumped through
a Mondomix mixing head (14) and a pinch valve (15) may be used to regulate the back pressure in the Mondomix mixing
head (14). The produced foam may be passed through an injection nozzle (17) into the batter feed pipe (19) for transporting
the batter mix. Downstream of the injection nozzle (17) in the batter feed pipe (19) may be an in-line static mixer (18)
for blending the primary foam with the batter mix to form the aerated batter. Down-stream of the in-line static mixer (18),
20 the batter feed pipe (19) leads to a batter arm (21), positioned to deposit batter onto a heated baking surface (not
depicted). The apparatus may further comprise a piston accumulator (20) for control of deposition of batter onto the
heated baking surface.
[0036] One aspect of the present invention relates to an apparatus for the production of a wafer which comprises:

25 (i) a storage vessel comprising a batter mix;

(ii) an aeration device responsible for an aeration treatment;

(iii) a batter feed pump for providing the batter mix from the storage vessel to the aeration device;
30
(iv) a batter depositor for depositing the aerated batter mix onto a heated baking surface.

[0037] In one embodiment, the flow of batter through the overall system may be driven by pumps up-stream to the
aeration treatment.
35 [0038] In a further embodiment of the present invention the flow of batter through the depositor may be controlled
(stopped and started) by an accumulator system.
[0039] In a further embodiment of the present invention, the flow of batter through the system may be driven by pumps
up-stream to the aeration treatment and the flow of batter through the depositor may be controlled (stopped and started)
by an accumulator system.
40 [0040] The inventors of the present invention found that mixing of the aerated batter prior to deposition on the hot
plates offers further advantages because it provided a better and more homogenous distribution of the cavities/cells in
the aerated batter. In this way the wafer produced using mixing of the aerated batter may provide an even stronger wafer
which may have an even lower effective density.
[0041] In an embodiment of the present invention the method further comprises mixing of the primary foam and the
45 batter.
[0042] In another embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus further comprises mixing of the batter-foam mix
and the mixing is provided by an in-line mixing device. The in-line mixing device should gently mix in the primary foam
to form a homogeneous batter. In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the in-line mixing device is a static
mixer. Examples of static mixers and the function of such static mixers may be found in EP 2 105 051.
50 [0043] Preferably, the static mixer may be located down-stream to the piston accumulator.
[0044] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus further comprises a storage vessel for further
batter ingredients.
[0045] In another embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus comprises a dosing pump for feeding the further
ingredients to the batter mix or the aerated batter mix.
55 [0046] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus further comprises means for removing baked
wafer from the heated baking surface.
[0047] In still another embodiment of the present invention, the aeration device may be comprising a Mondomix mixing

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 EP 2 401 921 A1

head.
[0048] In still another embodiment of the present invention, a pinch valve may be located prior to the mixing phase,
post aeration of the aerating agent to maintain pressure.
[0049] In another embodiment of the present invention, the heated baking surface is a wafer baking mould comprising
5 two plates locked in position to constrain the batter during the baking time.
[0050] The quality of wafer sheets may be controlled by flour property, ratio of water to flour in the batter and batter
temperature, mixing action, baking time and temperature. The quality may be judged by attributes of the batter such as
the effective density, viscosity, holding time and temperature, and by properties of the wafer such as weight, surface
colour, fragility, breakage force and moisture content.
10 [0051] The inventors of the present invention have found that the pre-existence of bubbles in the wafer batter leads
to the formation of a more homogenous distribution and/or size of cavity/cell in the water. The effect of the more homo-
geneous distribution and/or size is to make the wafer much stronger compared to a conventionally baked wafer with the
same effective density. This allows one to make wafers of a lower effective density than ever before, and still be able
to remove them from the wafer baking plates.
15 [0052] One aspect of the present invention relates to a wafer having:

(i) a breakage force of at least 1N;

(ii) an effective density of at most 0.16 g/cm3 when measured a 20°C.

20
[0053] The term breakage force is to be understood in the context of the present invention as the force required to
break the wafer and is measured by a 3-point bend test as detailed below. The 3-point bend breakage test is performed
with a TA.HD Plus Texture Analyser from Stable Micro Systems (httg.//www.stable-microsystems.com/), using a three
point bend rig and Exponent software to drive this rig as supplied by this company. The force is applied to the centre of
25 a wafer suspended at two points 10 cm apart on struts having horizontal 1cm diameter cylinders. The size of the wafer
piece is 20cm by 8cm, and it is placed evenly over the struts. The probe also has a horizontal 1cm diameter cylinder. A
testing speed of the probe of 1.00 mm/second is used together with a 50kg load cell (also supplied by Stable Micro
Systems}.
[0054] The breakage force relates to the stiffness of the wafer which governs processablility.
30 [0055] In the context of the present invention, the term "effective density"(ρett)" relates to the weight of sample divided
by the "envelope volume of sample". The envelope volume of the sample relates to the volume defined essentially by
the outer surfaces of the sample and includes any porosity within the sample.
[0056] In one embodiment of the present invention, the wafer has a breakage force of at least 1N, such as in the range
of 1-4N, preferably in the range of 2-4N, and/or an effective density of at most 0.16 g/cm3, such as in the range of
35 0.08-0.15 g/cm3, preferably in the range of 0.12-0.15 g/cm3.
[0057] In another embodiment of the present invention, the wafer has a homogenous distribution of bubbles/cavities.
[0058] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the wafer has a homogenous size of bubbles/cavities.
[0059] It should be noted that embodiments and features described in the context of one of the aspects of the present
invention also apply to the other aspects of the invention.
40 [0060] All patent and non-patent references cited in the present application, are hereby incorporated by reference in
their entirety.
[0061] The invention will now be described in further details in the following non-limiting examples.

Examples
45
[0062] The following Examples are provided of illustrative purposes only and they are not to be considered in any way
limiting to the scope of the present invention.
[0063] The skilled person would easily recognise that changes and modifications can be made with respect to the
examples which are still within the scope of the claims. That is, the skilled person will recognise many variations in these
50 examples to cover a wide range of formulas, ingredients, processing, and mixtures to rationally adjust the naturally
occurring levels of the compounds of the invention for a variety of applications.

Example 1

55 [0064] A primary foam is created by pumping a 1% solution of sodium caseinate (foaming agent) in water through a
Mondomix mixing head. A primary foam overrun in excess of 300% is created. A pinch valve is used to regulate the
back pressure in the Mondomix mixing head. The conventional wafer batter is pumped as conventionally done by the
batter pump towards the aeration treatment and the batter depositor. Before the batter reaches the batter depositor the

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 EP 2 401 921 A1

primary foam is injected into the flow of the batter. The batter and primary foam then pass through a static mixer producing
a homogeneous aerated batter. The aerated batter then passes through the depositor onto the wafer plates.
[0065] Robust wafers with an effective density in the range 0.08 g/cm3 to 0.16 g/cm3 are successfully baked.

5 Example 2

[0066] A primary foam is created by pumping a 1% solution of HYFOAMA (foaming agent) in water through an in-line
Mondomix mixer. The aeration gas is injected into the flow of solution immediately before the mixer. A primary foam
overrun in excess of 300% is created. A pinch valve is used to regulate the back pressure in the mixer. The conventional
10 wafer batter is pumped as conventionally done by the batter pump towards the aeration treatment and the batter depositor.
Before the batter reaches the batter depositor the primary foam is injected into the flow of the batter - the batter and
primary foam then pass through a static mixer producing a homogeneous aerated batter. The aerated batter then passes
through the depositor onto the wafer plates.
[0067] Robust wafers with an effective density in the range 0.08 g/cm3 to 0.16 g/cm3 are successfully baked.
15
Example 3

[0068] Conventional Method 1:

20 It is known that adding extra water to a wafer batter mix will reduce the effective density of a wafer. In the process
of baking any wafer from water based batter, when the batter is heated the water turns to steam, the steam forms
bubbles in the mix and these bubbles then form the cells in the wafer structure. The more water there is in a batter,
the more steam is generated, and the steam generates more bubbles/cells in the final wafer resulting in the batter
having a reduced effective density. This method can make wafers with an effective density down to around 0.18
25 g/cm3 that are robust enough to be processed.

Example 4

[0069] Conventional method 2:

30
In order to reduce the effective density of a wafer it is known to add baking powder to a wafer batter. As the baking
powder is heated in the presence of water, gas is chemically generated that forms bubbles in the batter. These
bubbles form the cellular structure in the wafer. Adding more baking powder increases the amount of gas generated,
and hence reduces the final effective density of the wafer. However, there is a limit to the amount of baking powder
35 that can be added, as an excess of baking powder leads to a distinct off flavour in the wafer. This leads to the same
effective density than by using Conventional method 1 but causes off-flavours in the wafer above 0.6% of batter recipe.

Claims
40
1. A method for the production of a wafer, the method comprises the steps of:

(i) providing a batter mix comprising at least flour and water;

(ii) subjecting the batter mix to an aeration treatment obtaining an aerated batter mix;
45 (iii) optional subjecting the aerated batter mix to mixing;
(iv) feeding the mixed and aerated batter mix to a heated baking surface through a batter depositor; and
(v) baking the mixed and aerated batter mix to obtain a wafer;

wherein the aeration treatment in step (ii) is down-stream from any direct pumping of the method.
50
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein there is no direct pumping of the batter mix after the batter mix has been
subjected to the aeration treatment in step (ii).

3. A method according to any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the aeration treatment is just before the batter reaches the
55 batter depositor or the aeration treatment form part of the batter deposition.

4. A method according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the aeration treatment involves preparation of a primary foam
followed by injection of the foam into the batter mix.

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 EP 2 401 921 A1

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the primary foam is prepared by pumping a foaming agent and water through
a Mondomix mixing head.

6. A method according to claim 5, wherein the foaming agent is selected from the group consisting of a protein containing
5 milk composition, such as sodium caseinate or HYPOAMA, wheat proteins, albumens and cellulose.

7. A method according to any one of claims 4-6, wherein the primary foam has a foam overrun above 200%, such as
above 300%, e.g. above 400%.

10 8. An apparatus for the production of a wafer which composes:

(i) a storage vessel comprising a batter mix;

(ii) an aeration device responsible for an aeration treatment;
(iii) a batter feed pump for providing the batter mix from the storage vessel to the aeration device;
15 (iv) a batter depositor for depositing the aerated batter mix onto a heated baking surface.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the apparatus further comprises an in-line mixing device.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the in-line mixing device is located down-stream from the aeration device.
20
11. An apparatus according to any one of claims 8-10, wherein the apparatus further comprises a storage vessel for
further batter ingredients.

12. An apparatus according to any one of claims 8-11, wherein the apparatus comprises a dosing pump for feeding the
25 further ingredients to the batter mix or the aerated batter mix.

13. An apparatus according to any one of claims 8-12, wherein the aeration device comprises a Mondomix mixing head.

14. A wafer obtainable by a method according to any one of claims 1-7.

30
15. A wafer having:

(i) a breakage force of at least 1N;

(ii) an effective density of at most 0.16 g/cm3 when measured a 20°C.
35

40

45

50

55

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REFERENCES CITED IN THE DESCRIPTION

This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader’s convenience only. It does not form part of the European
patent document. Even though great care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be
excluded and the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.

Patent documents cited in the description

• EP 2105051 A [0042]

Non-patent literature cited in the description

• International Journal of Food Science and Technol-

ogy, 2006, vol. 41, 569-576 [0002]

12