Perhaps one of the most crucial needs of a chef working in a commercial kitchen is to be able to preserve food, either fully or semi-cooked, in large quantities without and compromising quality.
If that sounds like you, Minipack has an impressive line of vacuum sealing machines to fit your needs, so you can choose the one that fits you best.
Minipack America caters to over 8 industries by providing technologically advanced, yet convenient to use, packaging solutions and systems.
All of their products are focused around ease of preserving food, regardless of whether you’re just looking to preserve food in a home or in an industrial kitchen.
The vacuum sealer machines are super easy to use, and Minipack has an official YouTube channel that provides a lot of helpful info about the company’s products; along with video comparisons to help you make your choice.
In this article, we’ll provide you with an overview of four of their vacuum sealers, along with a detailed comparison table, to help you decide on one that will work best for you.
1. Minipack MVS 31X
1. MVS 31X Minipack Vacuum Sealer with Chamber
Good things come in small packages, and the MVS31X chamber vacuum sealer is the perfect example of this.
Measuring at 15.5” W x 20” L x 27” H (lid open) with a chamber size of 13”x 11.75”x 6”, the machine offers you the convenience to store both dry and liquid food items.
Now enjoy storing fish and meat for sous vide cooking and also large stockpiles of rice and staples with this powerhouse in your kitchen.
For each cycle, you can seal 2 bags measuring up to 6” or 1 bag measuring up to 12”.
It has 9 programmable features, including the options to customize sealing and vacuum time, and an excess bag cut-off feature.
There’s an option for 30 seconds of extra vacuum for even better results.
This sealer can be customized with a standard single 4mm seal bar and hot wire cut-off, two 4mm parallel seal bars and no cut-off, or a single 6mm seal bar plus cut-off wire.
It works perfectly at 120 volts and has a Busch rotary oil pump.
The machine also comes with a two-year limited non-wear item parts warranty.
Looking at these specs, this is not only a great buy as an industrial vacuum sealing machine but also for domestic use.
User reviews indicate that people living near the sea love using this to store large quantities of fish to cook later.
It works just as well with dry items too, so no more stale crisps and cookies!
2. Minipack MVS 45X
2. MVS 45X Minipack Vacuum Sealer
Does your industrial kitchen require beef, pork, poultry, fruits, and vegetables to be stored in large quantities on a daily basis?
If yes, then MVS 45X is your best bet. With 10 programmable functions on a digital panel, using this machine for repetitive tasks is a breeze, saving plenty of time for chefs to multi-task.
Built with industrial kitchens in mind, the sturdy stainless-steel build is durable for small and medium-scale industrial food packaging.
The sealer weighs an impressive 202 lbs., with dimensions 21.25” W x 24.5” L x 31.25” H (lid open), making it difficult to move around on a regular basis.
You may just want to let it sit on the counter-top, churning out perfectly sealed bags within seconds.
But don’t be discouraged by its weight.
It’s incredibly easy to use! It’s fully automated and does not require you to keep pushing knobs and buttons to get it rolling.
Just customize it once for the type of food you are sealing and you are good to go for the future.
This device comes with a seal bar that is protected against surges in power supply, reducing its maintenance time.
As for cleaning, you just need a damp sponge to clean the basin after you are done with your food sealing process.
With a chamber size of 13” W and 11.75” L, you can seal 2 bags measuring up to 6” and 1 bag measuring up to 12”.
Get ready to preserve large quantities of liquid as well as dry food items!
3. Minipack MVS 45XII
3. MVS 45XII Minipack Vacuum Sealer
Do you want to preserve soft food items like bread, cheese, and cookies, but you don’t want them to get squished in vacuum sealing?
Then MVS 45XII is just the machine for you.
With the electronic soft air feature, the MVS 45XII ensures that soft food items retain their original shape even after they are vacuum sealed.
Pastry chefs and bakery owners can now heave a sigh of relief!
The dimensions are 21.25” W x 24.5” L x 31.25” H (open lid) with a weight of 206 lbs., making it suitable for a sturdy table or a good-sized kitchen counter.
You really do not need to move this powerpack around the kitchen; all you need to do is select one out of its 9 programmable functions, depending upon the item you are sealing, and let it do the rest.
Perhaps the best feature of the MVS 45XII is that it can literally take out 99.9% of the air.
It’s exhilarating to see food bags collapse completely around the food, no empty air pockets!
The sturdy stainless-steel build means business, and lets the machine run throughout the day without stopping.
One of the most useful features of this series is the oil change indicator that notifies you as soon as the oil needs to be changed.
MVS 45XII raises the bar (pun intended) with its two seal bars, sitting snugly on left and right of the chamber with independent power plates to keep power surges at bay.
This machine makes it much more convenient to store fish, meat, and marinades in bulk quantities and to do all your sous vide cooking later.
4. Minipack MVS 41X
4. MVS 41X Minipack Vacuum Sealer
If you have industrial needs, the MVS 41X means business.
The machine’s chamber, measuring 29” W x 13.5” L, is enormous compared to the other models.
The extra space is used very efficiently, housing 3 seal bars: on the front, left, and right, with their independent power plates.
The left and right seal bars are spaced in a way that you can seal up to two 25” fillets conveniently.
Bring on the fish and meat fillets!
Perhaps what you will find the most satisfying is that the MVS 41X features waffle pattern sealing, which ensures that there are no air pockets left around your food.
No longer will you have to worry about fruits and vegetables going dry inside the bag.
This fully automated machine comes with 9 programmable functions that you can customize for the type of food you are sealing.
You can also customize the vacuum time, excess vacuum time, and cut-off.
The only task you’ll have is to store your preserved food safely.
The MVS 41X weighs a hefty 245 lbs. Which makes sense, given all of its functionality.
It’s a table-top machine fit for use in medium to large-scale businesses where tons of dry as well as liquid items are to be stored safely away for later use.
The power requirement is 19A for it to run uninterrupted throughout the day, so you’d better invest in a powerful power supply switchboard to use it at full throttle.
5. Differences
Minipack has something for everyone’s needs.
The various models may have similar functionality—that of preserving your food by vacuum sealing—but they have differences when it comes to how this takes place.
While the difference in dimensions is not significant, the MVS 31X and MVS 45X have a noticeable pump power rating difference—0.5 hp for the former and 1.25 hp for the latter.
For you, this means that the 45X can sustain up to twice the workload in terms of running time, making it preferable for medium-scale businesses that want to maximize kitchen utility time.
The 45X and 45XII seem identical at first glance, but the additional seal bar in the 45XII makes a world of difference, especially in case of industrial kitchens with heavy workloads.
MVS 45XII can also seal double the number of bags per cycle, as the double seal bars go full length along the chamber.
Where the 45X can seal 3 bags measuring 5” by 7” per cycle, the 45XII does 6! Isn’t that amazing!?
While both MVS 45XII and MVS 41X are built for heavy use, there are subtle, yet important, differences.
The latter requires 19A power (as opposed to 17A required by MVS 45XII), and it quadruples the number of bags that can be vacuum sealed in a cycle, thanks to the significantly larger chamber size.
So, if you frequently store larger food items such as meat fillets and giant root vegetables, then the MVS 41X should be your pick.
6. Summary
Minipack vacuum sealers are available in a wide array of functionalities, covering all your needs from the very basic to highly advanced.
All the vacuum sealers use the Busch KB Oil Rotary pump and have a voltage requirement of 120 volts.
They come with one-year limited parts warranty and have an ETL certification.
They look great with their stainless-steel bodies and sturdy legs that can hold their weight safely on a sturdily built table-top or kitchen counter.
Each machine, be it the simplistic MVS 31X or the more complex MVS 41X, has the option to vacuum seal liquids as well as solids, with a dedicated tray for liquids.
Of course, the machines will require maintenance from time to time.
However, their seamless basin designs ensure that they are quite easy to clean, and the oil change indicator will make maintenance even more convenient.
The models containing more than one seal bar have separate power plates for each one, ensuring that both will not go haywire at the same time.
Most of the medium and advanced-scale machines come fully automated with programmable functions.
Once you program them, it is literally a single touch and you are good to go for the type of vacuum sealing you want.
Perhaps the only regret you will have after the purchase is that you didn’t buy one earlier.
We’ve included a comparison table below for all of the machines we have reviewed above, so you can have an easier time deciding which one to buy.
7. Comparison Table
Model |
MVS 31X |
MVS 45X |
MVS 45XII |
MVS 41X |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Colour |
Silver |
Silver |
Silver |
Silver |
Dimensions (lid open) |
15.5″W x 20″L x 27″H |
21.25″W x 24.5″L x 31.25″H |
21.25″W x 24.5″L x 31.25″H |
34″W x 20.5″L x 28″H |
Weight |
102 lbs. |
202 lbs. |
206 lbs. |
245 lbs. |
Time to Vacuum Seal |
Customizable |
Customizable |
Customizable |
Customizable |
Pulse feature |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
Number of seal bars |
1 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
Built in cutter |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Automatic Bag Detection |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Automatic moisture detection |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Compatibility Bags |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Bag Size |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Roll Size |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Works with wet food or juice |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Roll Storage Compartment |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Number of bags you can seal continuously (maximum) |
2 |
3 |
6 |
4 (large) |
Cycle time between seals |
Approx. 25-30 seconds |
Approx. 25-30 seconds |
Approx. 25-30 seconds |
Approx. 25-30 seconds |
Marinating Container |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Negative Pressure Maximal |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Mason jars seal |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Retractable power cord/Power cord storage |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Vacuum hose |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Loud |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Cleaning |
Manual |
Manual |
Manual |
Manual |
Voltage |
120V |
120V |
120V |
120V |
Power |
7.5A |
13A |
17A |
19A |
ETL Certification |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Warranty |
1 Year Limited |
1 Year Limited |
1 Year Limited |
1 Year Limited |
Made in |
Italy |
Italy |
Italy |
Italy |
