FR2707608A1 - Package for the display and preservation of food products, such as fruit or similar - Google Patents

Abstract

Package for the display and preservation of food products, in particular of fruit or similar, comprising an external shell in the form of a rigid or semi-rigid tray, consisting of two sections (2, 3) mutually connected by their peripheral edges (6) in a common joining plane and inside of which are placed the food products (8) to be preserved and displayed. According to the invention, this package is characterised in that the said products are enclosed in a confining assembly (7) separate from the external shell, disposed inside the latter and consisting of two deformable flexible films (9, 10) fixed together by their ends (11) to the two sections of the shell, along the common joining plane of these sections.

Description

 The present invention relates to a packaging, in particular for the presentation and preservation of food products enclosed within it, in particular and preferably but not exclusively, of the kind of fruit or vegetables whose degree of ripening evolves rapidly over time, said packaging also making it possible to protect them from shocks or direct pressures exerted on their surface, which are detrimental to their optimal preservation in the state.

 It is known that, in a traditional manner, foods of this kind, in particular recently picked fruits, are presented in bulk in crates or similar third bowl, if necessary by being ordered according to neighboring cells or imprints provided in a tray or similar support, of cardboard or other material, placed flat in the crate, the whole being covered or surrounded by a transparent plastic film, which is applied to the layer of fruit in the immediate vicinity thereof, while being stretched on the edges of the crate.

 This solution, if it has the advantage of making it possible to see the fruits and to keep them in place, has in fact serious drawbacks. Indeed, to ensure conservation for a minimum period, required by the transport, distribution and sale of the fruit thus conditioned, it is necessary to pick them in a significant pre-ripening state, which limits the physical characteristics and organoleptics of these fruits, these being most often picked at an early stage not allowing the initiation of this ripening and therefore being too hard at the time of their marketing after their packaging, while due to their more or less prolonged exposure after this, this ripening sometimes occurs under too fast conditions, in particular according to the exposure to the sun, the fruits quickly becoming too ripe and therefore unfit for consumption.

 This results in significant losses which considerably increase the costs of marketing the fruit in question, which cannot be picked at the best time of their ripening phase and kept in the state for a relatively long time, during which their properties should remain substantially equal to themselves.

 In addition, the consumer to whom the fruits are thus presented, often tends to touch them through the plastic film which protects them to test their degree of ripening by exerting on them a pressure which quickly damages their surface and leads to the appearance quick bluish areas that make them practically unsuitable for sale.

 The present invention relates to a packaging for presentation and preservation of food, in particular fruit or the like, which avoids these drawbacks, in particular by preventing the consumer from being able to touch or press the fruit through the packaging itself, the latter being also designed to improve the advantages of the classic presentation, namely the possibility of seeing at least partially the external appearance of this fruit to judge its appearance and presentation, this packaging being designed in such a way so that the fruit is here visible in its entirety and not only, as in the previous solutions, on the part of the latter which is outside the cells of its support tray, through the plastic film which covers the latter .

 To this end, the packaging considered, comprising an outer shell in the form of a rigid or semi-rigid container, consisting of two parts joined together by their peripheral edges according to a common junction plane, and inside which are placed the food products to be stored and presented, is characterized in that said products are enclosed in a containment assembly distinct from the external shell, arranged inside the latter and consisting of two flexible deformable films, fixed together by their ends to the two parts of the shell, according to the common plane of junction of these parts.

 Preferably, the two parts of the shell are produced by forming or molding two impressions in a plastic material, each comprising a bottom and a side wall terminated by a flat rim projecting towards the outside of the hull, the rims of the two parts applying mutually against each other according to the common junction plane. Depending on the case, the flat edges of the two parts are assembled by welding, by fusion sealing or by ultrasound, by gluing or stapling, or by mutual clipping by means of a similar mechanical connection.

 In a particular embodiment of the invention, the two parts of the outer shell are made of a material, of the polyethylene or polyvinyl chloride type, partially or totally translucent, the plastic material consisting of a simple support or else '' a multi-layered complex, co-laminated or coextruded. As a variant, the two parts of the shell can be mass-dyed or associated with a colored external or internal coating film, glued against the surface of each of the parts. Of course, the color of the plastic material or of the coating film can be chosen to vary from one package to another, in particular according to the nature of the food product and in particular of the fruit contained in this package, in order to emphasize the natural color of this fruit and even more so as not to distort it, while possibly providing protection against ultra-violet radiation resulting from the exposure of the packaging to the sun in the ambient atmosphere.

 According to another characteristic of the packaging considered, the two parts are separated and applied one on the other along their peripheral edges. Alternatively, the two parts are connected together by a fraction of their hinge edges, these parts being foldable against each other in the manner of the bottom and the cover of a box.

 According to yet another characteristic, the two flexible films of the containment assembly are made of a transparent or translucent plastic material, of the kind of stretched polyethylene films, tinted or not.

 Preferably but not necessarily, the containment assembly constitutes a closed pocket placed under vacuum or under low pressure, the two films enveloping the food products contained in the packaging, by conforming to the external contour of these products. As a variant, the confinement assembly is placed under a reduced atmosphere of a bacteriostatic inert gas, introduced into the confinement after evacuation of the air contained therein. Advantageously, such a gas consists of nitrogen, carbon dioxide or an appropriate mixture of these gases, or alternatively by any similar composition, optionally supplemented with oxygen.

 However, and depending on the case, the two parts of the outer shell and the two flexible films of the containment assembly can be respectively permeable or airtight.

 In all the variants, the packaging according to the invention thus makes it possible to ensure around the food products contained therein a first confinement which protects them from the external and internal atmosphere, directly when the films which constitute this confinement are themselves - same watertight, or indirectly when the two parts of the shell joined together achieve this tightness vis-à-vis the exterior or interior, the relative rigidity of the shell at the same time as the arrangement inside the latter from the confinement assembly at a distance from the walls of this shell, preventing any shock or direct pressure on the products placed in this confinement.

 This packaging thus makes it possible to preserve the product that it contains perfect physical integrity, by remarkably limiting the effects of the external environment, in particular on the accelerated ripening which normally results therefrom, thanks to the presence of internal confinement, the flexible films can be advantageously tinted, as well as the walls of the external shell, by playing the role of filters vis-à-vis external radiation and in particular the effects of the sun or the surrounding air.

This results in particularly appreciable advantages for the packaging of fragile fruits which ripen very quickly, in particular of the kind of peaches or apricots, these being moreover very sensitive to the pressures exerted on them, here totally avoided, which deteriorate them. under conditions that are difficult to control when these products are displayed for sale, while the
However, the customer must be able to examine at least the external aspect.

Other characteristics of a presentation and conservation packaging established in accordance with the invention will become apparent from the following description of various exemplary embodiments, given by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the appended drawing in which
- Figure 1 illustrates in perspective view a package according to the invention.

 - Figures 2 and 3 are views in longitudinal section, on a smaller scale, of the packaging according to Figure 1, to better explain the stages of production and implementation of internal containment and the outer shell.

 - Figures 4 and 5 are sectional views of alternative embodiments of the packaging according to Figures 1 to 3.

 - Figure 6 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the outer shell of the package.

 In Figure 1, the packaging considered is designated as a whole under the reference 1 and consists of an outer shell in two parts, respectively 2 and 3, applied one on the other, this shell having the form of 'a rigid or semi-rigid tray, made from a sheet of a suitable plastic material, suitably shaped to form the two corresponding imprints.

 Each part 2 or 3 of the shell thus has a flat bottom 4, a side wall 5 extending this bottom at its periphery and a flat rim 6 projecting outwards at the end of the wall 5 opposite the bottom 4, of so that when the two parts 2 and 3 of the outer shell are assembled, the flanges 6 of one and the other are in mutual contact along a common junction plane which, in the example shown, extends substantially in the middle of the package 1.

 According to the invention, the shell thus produced with its two parts 2 and 3 assembled to one another, encloses an internal confinement assembly 7, in which are previously arranged food products 8 to be protected and to be presented in the packaging, these products being preferably but not exclusively constituted by fruits, for example by peaches or apricots, that is to say by relatively fragile fruits and whose ripening is sometimes very rapid under the effect of exposure to air and sun, so that the duration of presentation in their packaging is usually very short, except for placing in it very unripe fruit and sometimes at the limit of minimum conditions making them suitable for the consumption.

 Preferably, the rigid or semi-rigid plastic material which constitutes the two parts 2 and 3 of the outer shell of the packaging is a translucent or transparent material; similarly the internal confinement 7 which directly surrounds the fruits 8 disposed inside the shell is produced by means of flexible and deformable films of transparent plastic material, so that the consumer can see, through the shell and the packaging, the fruits thus presented and at least, visually, judge their external appearance.

 The shell material can be made of molded polyethylene, or of polyvinyl chloride, or even of any other plastic material consisting of a single layer or of a complex assembly with multiple layers. In the same way, the flexible and deformable film of the internal confinement can also be formed of a single or complex film.

 In either case, the materials used can be completely transparent, or preferably be tinted, either in the mass, or by addition by gluing, co-laminating or other, of an internal or external coating comprising a appropriate color, the choice of the latter being of course indifferent to the present invention and being able to be selected in any shade between yellow, red, blue, green or gray, depending on the nature of the fruit contained in the packaging and its own external appearance.

 In the same way, the plastic materials constituting respectively the shell and the internal confinement can, as the case may be, be airtight or not vis-à-vis air or an appropriate gas. In particular, if the plastic film which constitutes the confinement is impermeable, it may be particularly advantageous to place the internal space thereof, in which the packaged fruits are arranged, under an atmosphere of bacteriostatic gas which promotes the conservation of these fruits. . As an indication, such an atmosphere can be constituted by nitrogen, carbon dioxide or any other suitable binary or ternary mixture, including where appropriate a suitable proportion of oxygen.

 As a variant, it is the shell itself formed by the assembly of these two parts 2 and 3 which produces a gas-tight assembly, possibly filled with a gaseous atmosphere of the preceding kind, the plastic film which constitutes the internal confinement. can be placed under vacuum, so that, by the vacuum created inside, the film is pressed on the fruits contained in the containment, ensuring a more effective maintenance thereof and improved conservation.

 In the sectional views of Figures 2 and 3, it can be seen that the internal confinement 7 is preferably carried out using two flexible and deformable films 9 and 10, which surround the fruits 8 and whose edges 11 are welded or otherwise fixed to each other to close the space delimited inside this confinement, these edges 11 being provided in line with the edges 6 of the two parts 2 and 3 of the external shell which tighten them together, closing off packaging simultaneously at the containment and hull level.

 Advantageously, the flexible films 9 and 10 are unrolled continuously from a machine not shown, by disposing on either side of the fruits 8 to be packaged before their edges 11 are secured by gluing, heat sealing, welding to ultrasound or other, at the same time as these films are suitably sectioned at the edges 6 of the shells 2 and 3 then applied and connected to each other to complete the packaging.

 D ".- a first embodiment illustrated in Figure 4, the fruits 8a, for example of the kind of strawberries, cherries or the like, of smaller volume than in the previous example, are contained in a support tray 12 which is itself housed between the films 9 and 10 of the internal confinement 7 before the edges 11 of these films are secured to the right of the flanges 6 of the two parts 2 and 3 of the external shell, as in the previous example.

 In the various variants above, the two parts 2 and 3 of the outer shell form imprints of volume substantially similar to one another; of course and as illustrated in FIG. 5, these two parts can be different, one 2a having an internal volume much greater than that of the other 3a, which has a folded rim 13 able to be fixed by mechanical clipping or other means on the end of part 2a, by trapping the edge 11 of the deformable films 9 and 10 of the internal confinement 7.

 Finally and as shown in Figure 6, the outer shell can be made, not in two separate parts, but by means of a single element comprising two flaps, 2a, 2b and 3b respectively, joined together by a tongue 13, comprising a middle fold 14 forming a hinge, so that the edges 6 of the two flaps can be folded over one another to close the shell as in the previous variants.

 This produces a packaging of very simple design which has remarkable advantages, while ensuring at the same time protection of the fruits or other food products which it contains against shocks or pressures exerted by the consumer, while allowing this last a complete vision of the fruit packed under all its faces, the fruit contained in its internal confinement being in a way suspended inside the external shell. In addition, the joint use of such confinement and a separate shell makes it possible to carry out, inside one or the other, a controlled atmosphere, possibly a vacuum which ensures conservation. optimal presentation of the fruits, these can be packaged in a ripened state making them suitable for consumption in the best conditions as soon as they are extracted from this packaging.

 Of course, and as follows from the above, it goes without saying that the invention is not limited to the embodiments more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings; on the contrary, it embraces all its variants. In particular, it is obvious that the invention does not prejudge the external shape of the two-part box, any more than that of the fruits packed in the internal confinement housed in the shell, the packaging being able to be easily adapted in each case. particular.

 Likewise, if the packaging described more specifically targets a containment assembly improving the conservation of such fruits, it could likewise be simply used to provide protection against impact or external pressure.

Claims (11)

 1 - Packaging for the presentation and preservation of food products, in particular fruit or the like, comprising an outer shell in the form of a rigid or semi-rigid container, consisting of two parts (2, 3) joined together by their peripheral edges ( 6) according to a common junction plane, and inside which are placed the food products (8) to be stored and presented, characterized in that said products are enclosed in a containment assembly (7) distinct from the outer shell , arranged inside the latter and consisting of two flexible films (9, 10) deformable, fixed together by their ends (11) to the two parts of the shell, according to the common plane of junction of these parts.  2 - Packaging according to claim 1, characterized in that the two parts (2, 3) of the shell are made by molding two impressions in a plastic material, each comprising a bottom (4) and a side wall (5) completed by a flat rim (6) projecting towards the outside of the hull, the rims of the two parts pressing against each other according to the common junction plane.  3 - Packaging according to claim 2, characterized in that the flat edges (6) of the two parts (2, 3) are assembled by welding, by fusion sealing or by ultrasound, gluing or stapling, or by mutual clipping or by means of a similar mechanical connection.  4 - Packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the two parts (2, 3) of the outer shell are made of a material, of the polyethylene or polyvinyl chloride type, partially or totally translucent, the plastic material consisting of a simple support or a complex with multiple co-laminated or coextruded layers.  5 - Packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the two parts (2, 3) of the shell are tinted in the mass or associated with an external or internal coating film, colored, glued against the surface of each part.  6 - Packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the two parts (2, 3) are separated and applied one on the other according to their peripheral edges (6).  7 - Packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the two parts (2, 3) are connected together by a fraction (13) of their edges (6) forming a hinge (14), these parts being foldable against each other.  8 - Packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the two flexible films (9, 10) of the containment assembly (7) are made of a transparent or translucent plastic material, of the film type polyethylene drawn, tinted or not.  9 - Packaging according to claim 8, characterized in that the containment assembly (7) constitutes a closed pocket placed under vacuum or under low pressure, the two films (9, 10) enveloping the food products (8) contained in the packaging, following the external outline of these products.  10 - Packaging according to claim 8, characterized in that the containment assembly (7) is placed under a reduced atmosphere of a bacteriostatic inert gas, introduced into the containment after evacuation of the air contained therein.  11 - Packaging according to claim 10, characterized in that the gas atmosphere consists of nitrogen, carbon dioxide or a suitable mixture of these gases, or by any similar composition, optionally supplemented with oxygen.