The smoking process consists of subjecting a food to a source of smoke from a wood fire. It is an ancient food preservation technique that gives the food certain important sensory qualities that are highly valued by the consumer. The « traditional smoking » process used in Asturias is based on the use of « fire carts », where a fire is made from noble woods (oak or chestnut), and smoke is generated. This markedly « traditional » character means that the work methodology is based on expert knowledge and does not have any type of control tool, which generates a series of problems: i) excessive dependence on manual labor; ii) lack of control during the combustion process; iii) quality problems of the final product; iv) high risk of fire; and v) high consumption of human resources.

In response to this problem, the GO-SMOKED innovation project proposes the design, development and validation of an innovative modular smoking system composed of different technological solutions aimed at digitalizing and automating the production process, while maintaining the differentiating organoleptic characteristics of the final product.

To address this objective, GO-SMOKED proposes different lines of action, all of them interrelated and aimed at increasing the competitiveness of companies through the implementation of tools capable of providing solutions to the problems and needs detected:

• Isolation of the smoke generation area from the smoking area, allowing the optimization of combustion and eliminating the risk of fire.
• Optimization of the smoke generation process through the use of more sustainable specific raw material (pellets) or woodchips
• Digitalization and automation of the Asturian sausage production process through the development and implementation of sensors and algorithms capable of monitoring and controlling, in real time, process parameters and product quality parameters.

In this project, TSK is the representative of the group, with the technical collaboration of ASINCAR, and as beneficiary partners of the group: FORESTRY AND WOOD TECHNOLOGICAL CENTER FOUNDATION (CETEMAS) and Jesús Perez Mayor S.L.