To produce thousands of ice cubes a day, it usually takes a good twenty minutes at Stéphan Heinen, manager of the Cubiglace company.
Every day, this company produces an average of around 5 tonnes of ice cubes. But this week, the yield is much lower this week, because the machines suffer, and struggle to cool the water. “Because of the heat, the manufacturing cycle is lining up a bit,” said an employee.
The company feeds in particular Horeca establishments, bars and restaurants. To meet demand, Stéphan Heinen draws from the production of the last months, ice cubes stored at less than 18 degrees. A week like this, it sells about 600 tonnes, 60 times more than in a quiet period. “With the hot weather and the events of summer, the stock flows quickly,” says the manager. Industrial ice cubes, this manager of a coffee consumes up to 35 kg per day when it is hot, and one kilo costs him a euro.
“A good drink not fresh is not great. It is therefore important. There are machines for making them yourself, but it is very expensive in energy, ”says Kylian Vaessen, managing coffee.
In Belgium, several companies produce tens of thousands of tons of ice cubes and crushed ice each year. A sector of the future: Stephan Heinen is convinced of this, with episodes of hot weather brought to repeat itself. What worries him, however, is competition from abroad. “Mainly Spain. People who cross Europe to bring ice cubes, it seems incredible, and yet. And they have competitive prices, the water is cheaper in Spain, ”says Stéphan Heinen.
To produce a bag of 5 kilos of ice cubes, it takes at least 10 liters of water, with substantial energy consumption: 25,000 kWh per month, the equivalent of the average annual consumption of 7 households.
