Description:TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention is related to the process for extending the shelf life of a processed food, in particular, by treating the food with a volatile substance and then processing the treated food.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The preservation of food products continues to be the focus of considerable commercial interest. By extending the shelf life of a food product, eg, a processed or cured meat, considerable economic value can be added to that product. Approaches to this end are many and varied, eg, tight control of production and storage conditions, packaging, post and in situ applications of preservatives, and various combinations of these and other techniques are known and in practice to one extent or another.
[0003] The conventional gaseous processes aimed at extending the shelf-life of materials prone to microbial spoilage have relied on modified atmosphere procedures. In such procedures, the oxygen gas atmosphere surrounding the material is replaced with a food grade carbon dioxide and/or nitrogen atmosphere, and high barrier laminate packaging is used to maintain the exclusion of oxygen from the package. The slight acidity produced by carbonic acid which results from the exposure of the material to carbon dioxide produces a fungicidal effect. However, the processes have disadvantages. It has been found that an extension of the shelf-life is achieved in respect of materials treated by the procedures, this extension is limited, and considerable costs are involved including the cost associated with the specialized laminate film packaging used.
[0004] Although there are methods available to extend the life of foodstuffs, there is still a problem to attain an adequate or extended shelf life of processed foods such as shaved and sliced meats and smallgoods. Although the shelf life of whole meats may be extended, the process of cutting, slicing and shaving such food products adds a further potential for contamination and thus spoilage over shorter periods.
[0005] Therefore, there is a need of process and apparatus which overcomes the aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY
[0006] Embodiments of the present disclosure present technological improvements as solutions to one or more of the above-mentioned technical problems.
[0007] Before the present subject matter relating to method for treatment of food products, it is to be understood that this application is not limited to the particular system described, as there can be multiple possible embodiments which are not expressly illustrated in the present disclosure. It is also to be understood that the terminology used in the description is for the purpose of describing the implementations or versions or embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of the present subject matter.
[0008] This summary is provided to introduce aspects related to method for treatment of food products. This summary is not intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter nor is it intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the present subject matter.
[0009] In one embodiment, a method of treating a perishable material to preserve it comprising the steps of: placing the material in a vessel capable of evacuation; evacuating the vessel; and contacting the material with a volatile substance capable of physically or chemically altering the material, the substance being entrained in a carrier gas. In another embodiment of the present invention, rather than using an instrument where the food product is placed inside a chamber and removed in batch size quantities, it is contemplated that a conduit means will be used to pass the pre-sorted food product through a chamber being supplied by the hydrogen peroxide vapor generator. Such a conduit means can include, for example, a conveyor belt, an auger system or a shute system. The food product may then be aerated to remove the peroxide residuals by a variety of methods, for example, heating, subjecting the product to a vacuum, and supplying a volume of air or other gas over the product. The food is then conveyed to be finally packaged or proceed to further processing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
[0010] The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the drawings to reference features and modules.
[0011] Figure 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a continuous processing system.
[0012] Figure 2 illustrates a schematic elevational representation of a continuous treatment apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
[0013] Figure 3 illustrates a flowchart of the treatment method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0014] It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any block diagrams herein represent conceptual views of illustrative methods embodying the principles of the present disclosure. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, and the like represent various processes which may be substantially represented in computer readable medium and so executed by a computer or processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments which do not limit the scope and ambit of the invention. The description provided is purely by way of example and illustration.
[0016] One or more embodiments are provided so as to thoroughly and fully convey the scope of the present invention to the person skilled in the art. Numerous details are set forth, relating to specific components, and methods, to provide a complete understanding of embodiments of the present invention. It will be apparent to the person skilled in the art that the details provided in the embodiments should not be construed to limit the scope of the present invention. In some embodiments, well-known processes, well-known apparatus structures, and well-known techniques are not described in detail.
[0017] The terminology used, in the present invention, is only for the purpose of explaining a particular embodiment and such terminology shall not be considered to limit the scope of the present invention. As used in the present invention, the forms "a,” "an," and "the" may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly suggests otherwise. The terms "comprises," "comprising," “including,” and “having,” are open ended transitional phrases and therefore specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, modules, units and/or components, but do not forbid the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The particular order of steps disclosed in the method and process of the present invention is not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance as described or illustrated. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may be employed.
[0018] Figure 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a continuous processing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0019] The system includes a conduit means (10) that transport the food product (11) into treatment chamber (15) whereupon the food product is preheated in a preheating portion (16) of chamber (15) and conveyed to a treatment portion (13) whereupon the food product is exposed to hydrogen peroxide vapor generated by the hydrogen peroxide vapor generator (12). The hydrogen peroxide vapor is introduced into the treatment portion (13) via an injector means (17). The food product is then conveyed to an aeration portion (14) of the chamber (15) where any hydrogen peroxide vapor residue is removed. The food is then conveyed for packaging (20).
[0020] Figure 2 illustrates a schematic elevational representation of a continuous treatment apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
[0021] An alternative application to the batch process is to conduct the method of the invention continuously while conveying material through a commercially available flow wrapper 24, or similar packaging system, equipped with a conveyor 25, a gas sparging head 26 and a gas control system 27.
[0022] Typically, the method can be balanced to attain treatment times of only seconds. Of course, longer treatment times may be necessary depending upon a number of variables including initial microbial content. The short processing time can yield up to 30 days and longer extension in the acceptable shelf life of bread and other baked products. Shelf life is evaluated on the basis of flavor and aroma profiles, as well as visible evidence of fungal and/or bacterial spoilage.
[0023] Figure 3 illustrates a flowchart of the treatment method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0024] An alternative embodiment of an apparatus for carrying out the inventive method is shown in FIG. 3 in which compressed gas, typically carbon dioxide, from source 51 passes through regulator 52 when valve 53 is opened. The carrier gas is transferred through transfer line TL1, to flow meter 54. The process controller controls 55 monitors and controls the flow of carrier gas through the flow meter 54 at a predetermined rate. The carrier gas is then transferred through line TL2 to the sparger 56, and sparged through the volatile substance contained in vessel 57. As mentioned above, the inventive method can include one or more such vessels to provide a mixture of volatile substances in the carrier gas. If carbonic acid treatment is required vessel 57 may be at least initially filled with water.
[0025] Preferably the carrier gas is saturated with volatile substance(s). The carrier gas/volatile substance mixture is then transferred through line TL3 into the liquid trap 58, to ensure that an aerosol is not transferred into line TL4. In operative mode, the gas mixture is then normally transferred through line TL4 and through valve 59, with valves 64 and 68 closed, through heating manifold 70, which is normally not in heating mode, through to product treatment container 60, which may be the final packaging; vacuum/pressure vessel; treatment tunnel.
[0026] After the prescribed treatment, the carrier gas stripped of volatile(s) may be transferred through line TL5 with valve 61 open and valve 62 closed, to compressor 63, and recycled back to compressed gas cylinder 51. Alternatively, after leaving treatment container 60 the volatile(s) stripped carrier gas can be vented to the atmosphere with valve 61 closed and valve 62 open.
[0027] When a material is not being treated but it is desirable to maintain the carrier gas/volatile substance flow, especially in the case of treatment with carbonic acid, valve 59 is closed and valve 64 is opened with valve 65 closed, the carrier gas/volatile substance mixture is transferred through line TL6 to water scrubber 66 where the volatile substance is stripped from the carrier gas and the gas is vented to atmosphere or recycled.
[0028] Quality measurements of the carrier gas and the volatile substance are performed by closing valves 59 and 64 and opening valve 65, transferring the gas mixture through line TL7 to quality control station 67 for testing. Test data from control station 67 is sent to process controller 55 which monitors and controls the flow of carrier gas through the flow meter 54. If station 67 identifies that the carrier gas is being slowly diluted by atmospheric gas the process controller 55 may increase the flow rate through flow meter 54, until the predetermined maximum volatile substance transfer rate is achieved, at which point a predetermined percentage of recycled carrier gas is vented to the atmosphere and an equivalent volume of new carrier gas fed into the circuit from compressed carrier gas vessel 51.
[0029] If a high concentration of a volatile substance or a mixture of volatile substances is required for a given application, the standard carrier gas/volatile substance mixture transferring through line TL4 may be dosed with additional volatiles by injection of a fine aerosol of the desired volatile substance from a storage tank/atomizer 69 through opened valve 68. The gas mixture/aerosol continues to transfer along line TL4 and is heated to beyond the vaporization point of the added aerosol in the heated manifold 70, from where it enters the treatment container 60 as normal. Prolonged production runs employing this additional dosage system may cause condensation on the inner walls of treatment vessels/tunnels if they are not heat lagged.
[0030] The foregoing description of the invention has been set merely to illustrate the invention and is not intended to be limiting. Since modifications of the disclosed embodiments incorporating the substance of the invention may occur to person skilled in the art, the invention should be construed to include everything within the scope of the invention.
, Claims:We claim:
1. A method for treating food products comprising the steps of:
a. Providing a chamber suitable for containing food products;
b. Generating hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor within said chamber using a generator; and
c. Exposing the food products to a controlled mixture of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor within said chamber to achieve a desired treatment effect.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the generator comprises at least one nozzle for introducing hydrogen peroxide and water into said chamber.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the generator is configured to control the concentration of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor in the chamber.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the treatment effect comprises at least one of microbial reduction, pathogen elimination, shelf-life extension, and
5. The method of claim 1, further comprising monitoring the concentration of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor in the chamber during the treatment process.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the exposure of the food products to the mixture of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor is controlled by adjusting at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of time, temperature, humidity, and concentration.
7. A system for implementing the method of claim 1, comprising:
a. a chamber suitable for containing food products;
b. a generator configured to introduce hydrogen peroxide and water into the chamber and to control the concentration of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor within the chamber; and
c. a controller for regulating the treatment process within the chamber.
8. The system of claim 7, further comprising a monitoring system for assessing the concentration of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor within the chamber during the treatment process.
9. The system of claim 7, wherein the controller is configured to adjust the exposure of the food products to the mixture of hydrogen peroxide vapor and water vapor based on real-time feedback from the monitoring system.