Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Contacting food in liquid or solid state with exteriorly...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-25
2001-04-03
Tentoni, Leo B. (Department: 1732)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Contacting food in liquid or solid state with exteriorly...
C053S432000, C053S434000, C053S512000, C426S316000, C426S320000, C426S321000, C426S326000, C426S327000, C426S332000, C426S333000, C426S335000, C426S392000, C426S393000, C426S410000, C426S418000, C426S518000, C426S524000, C426S602000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06210730
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the preservation of wrapped and/or sealed foodstuffs. More specifically, the present invention is directed to the treatment of a perishable meat product preparatory to retail display.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Contemporary packaging of perishable products, and especially meat products, envisions maintaining the product in a controlled atmosphere from the time it is prepared at the packer until it is purchased by the consumer. Methods and apparatus to accomplish these objectives have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,919,955, 5,352,467 and 5,481,852.
Several disadvantages however, exist with respect to the presentation of modified atmosphere packaged products to the consumer. One such disadvantage occurs when the product is sealed in a rigid tray with a flexible cover or film type lid. In instances where an enriched oxygen or carbon dioxide mixture is introduced into the package prior to presentation to the consumer, as is the case to promote a desirable “bloomed” color indicative of oxymyoglobin, the product must be sized so as to only partially fill the package resulting in a remaining void fraction or “headspace”. This is because meat products readily respire upon the addition of soluble gases (e.g. oxygen or carbon dioxide). When these soluble gases are introduced into the package, they are absorbed into the meat tissue. This absorption continues for a protracted period which is known as the product shelf life. At the end of the shelf life, the product assumes a brownish color indicative of metmyoglobin.
Upon exposure to oxygen, the myoglobin pigment of muscle tissue is oxygenated. Carbon dioxide is dissolved in the water phase of the meat product. This absorption of these soluble gases results in the collapse or partial collapse of the hermetically sealed package lidding film. If the product is not proportionally undersized, the lidding film will be so tightly drawn downward due to the absorption of oxygen and carbon dioxide that the film touches the product. In the event of a meat product, the area of contact between the film and the product terminates respiration and as a consequence the product adopts an unpalatable brownish color indicative of metmyoglobin.
To avoid this phenomena, marketers of sealed products packaged in a modified atmosphere have adopted a process whereby a void fraction is built into the package in an amount proportional to its anticipated shelf life. In instances with an anticipated shelf life of 10 to 12 days, the void fraction is as large as the volume reserved for the product itself. As might be expected, this proposed solution is both unattractive and economically impractical since packaging and shipping costs are disproportionate to the volume of product.
Other disadvantages associated with packaged products include lack of moisture retention, or “purge”. Purge occurs when the product is subjected to contact pressures such as those common in transport or those associated with a plastic film vacuum package. Purge also occurs when the product is subjected to temperatures above 40° F. such as commonly occurs in the retailer display cabinet. Previously, no solutions have yet been proposed to address this phenomena.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention addresses the above and other disadvantages associated with prior art packing and gas exchange systems.
The present invention contemplates a process by which liquid exudate is minimized while at the same time allowing a meat product to be positioned in a sealed container so as to minimize unused volume. In a preferred embodiment, this process includes a series of sequential steps comprising chilling the meat product to a selected temperature range either before of after it is placed and sealed within a container, introducing a chilled gas mixture containing a significant inert gas fraction into the container, and thereafter removing this chilled gas and exchanging that gas with a gas mixture containing a high oxygen fraction.
The present invention presents a number of advantages over the prior art. One advantage is the minimalization of liquid purge from a meat product which may be subsequently exposed to a variety of temperatures and conditions. A second advantage presented by the method of the instant invention is the ability to utilize a sealed product package which is of substantially the same dimensions as the meat product itself. In such a fashion, waste and unit cost is minimized.
Other advantages will become obvious in view of the following detailed description.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In one embodiment of the present invention, a given product, e.g., a beef product, is prepared for shipment to a retail facility, e.g., a grocery facility, for ultimate presentation to the consumer. For obvious reasons, it is desired to maintain the maximum freshness of the meat product during the time it is transported from the slaughterhouse to the retail outlet. In such a fashion the product is afforded a maximum shelf life.
The first step of such a method is to seal the product in a fluid tight container while the product is exposed to an oxidizer, e.g., O
3
, F
2
, H
2
O
2
, KMnO
4
, HOBr, HOCl, Cl
2
, ClO
2
, O
2
, Br
2
or I
2
. By exposure to one or a combination of such oxidizers, the microbial presence on the exterior of the product will be substantially reduced or even neutralized. Moreover, by sealing both the oxidizer and the product within the container, the residence time of the oxidizer may be strictly controlled.
To enhance the effectiveness of the oxidizer, it may be desirable, once the package is sealed, to introduce a higher concentration of the same or a different agent into the sealed package. To further enhance the effectiveness of such an oxidizer, it may also be desirable to change the pressure within the package beyond a single atmosphere. Still alternatively, it may be desirable to change the temperature of the meat product and thereby expedite the oxidation process within the sealed package. In one embodiment, the meat product may be chilled to between 26-36° F. In still a further embodiment, it may also be desirable to employ infrared or ultraviolet radiation to said product to inhibit microbial activity on a given product.
To ensure that the product is uniformly exposed to a given agent, e.g., an oxidizer, the package preferably includes a bottom tray which is provided with a series of raised knobs or ridges. To further ensure that the product receives maximum exposure to the agent, the package, once sealed, may also be vibrated or oscillated for a short period of time during the packaging or transport stage, so as to vary the contact zones between the raised knobs or ridges and the product.
While exposure of the product to an oxidizer is beneficial from the standpoint of eliminating most surface microbial activity, it is sometimes desirable to remove or reduce the oxidizer after a selected residence time. To ensure the effectiveness of the gas, a residence time may be employed to establish an average penetration of some 5-7 mm or, in the instance of a ground meat product, that residence time necessary to ensure complete penetration. The length of this residence time will depend on such factors as the nature of the product, the mass of the product, the fat content of the product, the water content of the product, the temperature at which the product has been maintained, and the identity and concentration of the oxidizer. Once this residence time has been achieved, it is desirable to externally activate or remove the oxidizer from the package without disrupting the sealed integrity of the package itself. This may be achieved by extracting the oxidizer through a septum valve or other similar resealable valve disposed in the package.
Once the oxidizing agent is withdrawn, it may be desirable to introduce a second agent into the package to further minimize microbial activity on the product, or to inhibit the growth of bacteria during product presentatio
Sankey & Luck L.L.P.
Tentoni Leo B.
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