JP4630699B2 - Method for producing retort pouch food with straw - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for producing a retort pouch food with a straw.

  Currently, approximately 500 million packs of weak acidic drinks and jelly drinks packed in flexible packs with straws are produced and sold annually. The pack is a bag-like container (pouch) that uses a resin film or a composite film of aluminum and resin, and is attached with a cap that also functions as a straw called a spout, and is inserted into the pouch. A structure is used in which a flange is provided in the middle of the take-out pipe, a take-out port part (straw part or nozzle part) having a male screw on the outer periphery is provided above the brim, and the cap is screwed into the take-out port part. A virgin ring is provided at the lower end through a weakened portion so as to be cut by loosening the cap, and this is located on the collar below the male screw.

  In the pouch having such a structure, the content is usually a weak acid food, and the sterilization temperature in this case is about 80 to 98 ° C. For this reason, when the content is a liquid such as fruit juice, it is filled from the opening of the take-out part of the spout body, and a cap is applied immediately after that. The solution is filled from the opening of the take-out portion with a filling machine, immediately capped, sealed and cooled, and then gelled by the gelling agent contained in the solution. Therefore, there are almost no problems such as deformation and leakage of the container due to the sterilization treatment and safety problems.

However, in recent years, retort foods and hot foods for general use, nursing care, emergency food, etc., such as breakfast substitute foods, nursing foods, high-calorie foods for energy consumption such as exercise, nutritional supplements There is a demand for a full pack with a straw that can be easily ingested directly from a straw for food, baby food, and the like.
Since these foods generally belong to neutral foods, it is indispensable to perform heat and pressure sterilization by retort treatment. However, when a conventional filling and sealing method is applied, there is a big problem.

  In other words, since the conventional spout is closed by the male screw and the female screw, this is applied to the spout of neutral food as it is, the food is filled through the opening of the spout body, and the take-out portion is capped. In the case of retort processing, there is a sanitary problem that the seal is released due to loosening of the cap or the main body due to expansion, contraction, deformation, etc. due to heat, leaking contents or invading bacteria. appear.

Therefore, in order to cope with the retort processing, it is insufficient to seal only the plastic cap, and several methods have been conventionally considered as a countermeasure.
1) A method of sticking a laminated aluminum foil or the like to the mouth after filling food from the take-out mouth.
2) A method in which a laminated aluminum foil or the like is attached to the take-out port in advance, and the pouch is sealed after filling food from the top, side, bottom, etc. of the pouch.

However, this method has the following problems. That is, retort foods and drinks and hot foods and drinks are often in the form of paste, cream-like viscous fluid containing at least one kind of itching, ground fish meat, meat, vegetables, etc. There are many things that contain things, especially those that have been intentionally provided with “Thoromi” as a countermeasure against aspiration.
For this reason, in the method 1), when filling from a small diameter (about 9 mm in diameter) of the take-out port, a highly viscous liquid adheres to the take-out port, and this deposit causes a seal failure. Leakage of things and invasion of bacteria from the outside may occur, which is a serious safety problem.

Since the method 2) is filling from the pouch side, there is almost no problem during filling. However, taking into account that there is an abnormality in the seal of the take-out port at the time of sterilization after filling, the cap is tightened in advance, but the aluminum foil is completely sealed immediately after the retort treatment or in the cooling process. It is difficult to inspect whether it has been done, and there is a risk of missing a sealing failure and the resulting liquid leakage.
In addition, it is difficult to inspect and check for slow leaks and micro leaks after retort processing, and during the retort process, water enters between the cap and the outlet port due to the steam shower inside the retort machine, making it even more difficult to inspect liquid leaks, etc. become. Therefore, there is a problem that the safety of the product cannot be confirmed.
In addition, in both 1) and 2), it takes time and labor to peel off the small aluminum foil when eating and drinking, and the treatment of the peeled aluminum foil piece has been troublesome.

The present invention was made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and the purpose of the present invention is to easily fill viscous foods, and to guarantee perfect sealing of the straw part after filling, The object is to provide a method for producing a highly safe retort pouch food with a straw.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a closed portion integrally with a take-out cylinder in order to obtain a retort pouch food filled with contents belonging to neutral food in a bag-like container fitted with a spout that functions as a straw. The target food is filled from the appropriate place in the bag-like container without attaching a cap to the spout, the filling portion is sealed and the bag-like container is sealed, and the spout before and after the retort treatment, respectively. It is characterized by inspecting the contents for leakage and then applying a cap to the take-out cylinder.

  The bag-shaped container body is filled directly with food, making it easy to fill with viscous liquids or liquids containing solids, and does not require sealing work such as sticking aluminum foil to the spout outlet. Since the retort process is performed without any problems, the process is simple, and the cap is not attached to the spout and the outlet is exposed, so the retort process determines whether the spout is completely sealed and the microslow leak is judged. Since the double check is performed before and after the retort treatment, a safe and safe retort or hot food or drink can be manufactured.

Attach the spout to the bag-like container before filling the contents and fill the bag-like container at the site where the spout is avoided, or fill without attaching the spout to the bag-like container, and after filling the spout to the bag-like container Insert and seal.
The former is suitable for a pouch food having a large capacity, and the latter is suitable for a pouch food having a relatively small capacity.

  Preferably, the spout closing portion is connected to the inside of the take-out pipe below the upper end of the take-out pipe via the ring-shaped weak portion and extends in the axial direction with a slight gap, and a ratchet is provided on the outer periphery. The cap forms a ratchet that engages with the ratchet, and the ring-shaped weak portion is cut open by loosening the cap, and the take-out pipe portion opens and the cut weak portion is opened. The part is held by the cap.

According to this, since the ring-shaped weak part is inside the mouth of the spout take-out pipe, it is difficult to be damaged even if the spout collides with equipment during transport or retort processing, and heat is generated during retort processing. Therefore, the concern that the seal is released can be reduced.
Moreover, even if a cap is attached, the seal is not released, and an accurate sealed state can be maintained until eating and drinking. And the function of the closing part is released by loosening the cap during eating and drinking, and the removed closing part is automatically held by the cap, so that eating and drinking is easy.

The cap is made of transparent material.
According to this, the leak check after the retort processing can be easily performed visually, and it is easy to discriminate when there is a liquid leak.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 to 10 show a first embodiment of a method for producing a retort pouch food with a straw according to the present invention.
FIG. 1 shows an outline of the process and equipment, a process of preparing the contents, a process of sterilizing the prepared contents, and a process of filling the retort-compatible container with the sterilized contents without a cap attached. A step of sealing and sealing the container body, a first stage leak inspection process, a retort treatment process, a moisture removal process of the take-out part, a second stage leak test process, a cap attaching process to the take-out part, The three-stage leak inspection process and the product boxing process are performed in this order.

As the content A, one belonging to a neutral food is usually selected. Examples include pastes containing one or more of itching, ground fish, meat, vegetables, etc., those in the form of creamy viscous fluids, those containing some solids, The thing with "Toromi" as a countermeasure against swallowing can be mentioned. Applications are arbitrary such as general use, nursing care, emergency food, and the like.
Such a content A is prepared in a preparation tank as shown in line 1 of FIG. 1 before filling, extracted from this, and sterilized by a high temperature sterilizer such as a tube sterilizer. If the contents are a mixture of semi-solids such as potatoes, or liquids such as coffee and milk, homogenization is not performed and UHT sterilization is performed as in line 2. Eliminate heat-resistant bacteria, etc. using a predetermined method such as a machine.
The sterilized contents are sent to a filling / spout sealing facility and filled into a pouch container.

2 and 3 show examples of containers suitable for use in the present invention. In FIG. 2, 1 is a bag-like container (pouch), 2 is a spout, and no cap is attached at this stage. .
In this example, the pouch 1 is composed of a bag of non-breathable and non-light-transmitting material in which at least two layers of a synthetic resin film and aluminum foil are laminated and laminated, and may or may not have a gusset. May be.
In this example, since the pouch 1 has a relatively large volume of, for example, 400 cc or more, both side portions and the bottom portion are heat sealed in advance, and belt-shaped seal portions 1a, 1a, 1b are provided.
The spout 2 is made of a heat-resistant synthetic resin molded body, and has a sealing collar portion 3a at an intermediate portion, and a pouring pipe portion 3b inserted into the pouch below the sealing collar portion 3a. Is provided. The sealing collar portion 3a is mounted on the upper portion of the pouch 1, and in this state, the upper portion of the pouch is temporarily heat-sealed so as to be temporarily fixed. Reference numeral 1c denotes a belt-like seal portion at the top of the pouch. In this example, an unsealed portion is left in a part of the upper seal portion 1c, and an opening 1d for filling is provided.

An extraction pipe portion 3d is formed on the sealing collar portion 3a of the spout 2 via several stages of collars 3c. The take-out pipe portion 3d is a portion that functions as a straw or nozzle during eating and drinking, and is provided with a locking collar 30 and a male screw 31 at an appropriate distance on the outer periphery of the position at a required distance from the upper end. It has been.

The take-out pipe portion 3d is provided with a closing structure suitable for securing a sealed state at the time of filling and light opening at the time of intake. That is, as shown in detail in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, it is concentric with the take-out port 32 inside the take-out port 32 above the male screw 31 of the take-out pipe portion 3d and at a position below a required distance from the upper end thereof. The protruding portion 3e has a small diameter portion 3f for introducing cutting torque that protrudes from the upper end of the take-out port 32 from the upper end. In this example, the small-diameter portion 3f is configured in a cup shape with the top wall of the protruding portion 3e as the bottom. On the outer periphery of the small-diameter portion 3f, teeth for working only in one direction, for example, a plurality of ratchets 35 bent in the clockwise direction are arranged. The circumscribed circles of the ratchets 35 are substantially the same diameter as the outer diameter of the protruding portion 3e.

In this example, the protruding portion 3e has a cylindrical shape, and an annular gap 7 is provided between the protruding portion 3e and the inner surface of the outlet 32, and the connecting portion 33 is integrated with the inner surface of the outlet 32. At the base end portion 33, a fragile portion 34 in the form of a thin ring film having a predetermined height is formed.
The entire circumference of the connecting portion 33 may be at the same level in the height direction of the outlet tube 32. In this example, however, the connecting portion 33 intentionally has a predetermined displacement, and in response, The fragile portion 34 is not orthogonal to the take-out pipe portion axis and intersects at an inclination angle α. That is, in FIG. 3A, the left end is the farthest back of the take-out port 32, and the 180 ° symmetrical right end is near the entrance of the take-out port 32, and continuously changes between them. Therefore, the length of the inner cylinder portion 3e is different in the circumferential direction. In FIG. 3A, the left end is the longest and the right end is the shortest, and continuously changes between them.

  The container is supplied to a filling machine, the nozzle 5 of the filling machine is inserted into the filling opening 1d of the pouch 1, and the content A heated to a temperature in the range of 85 to 95 ° C., for example, is injected. At this time, the take-out pipe portion 3d of the spout 2 is not capped, but the protruding portion 3e including the fragile portion 34 closes the mouth of the take-out pipe portion 3d as described above. No discharge occurs, and even a viscous content can be filled smoothly and efficiently.

When the filling is completed, the pouch 1 is rotated and sent to a sealer downstream of the filling machine to heat-seal the pouch portion that has formed the opening 1d for filling, and the spout sealing collar 3a. Seal and seal. Thus, the primary product B as shown in FIG. 5 is obtained.
The primary product B is transported from the sealer to the retort machine, and the abdomen of the pouch 1 is slightly moved as shown in FIG. Compress and inspect the contents A for leaks. This inspection includes a pinhole inspection, and the inspection method may be visual, or optional for photoelectric scanning, X-ray scanning, and the like. In order to improve efficiency, as shown in FIG. 1, this inspection is performed by placing a pressing conveyor 6 ′ facing the conveyor 6, pressing the abdomen of the pouch 1 conveyed by the conveyor 6, and immediately downstream after that. The means 8 is arranged to chuck the state of the pouch seal portion and the take-out pipe portion 3d.
Since the take-out pipe part 3d of the spout 2 is not capped, it is possible to detect directly whether the contents are leaking, that is, whether the sealing is complete. Therefore, useless retort processing can be reduced.

Next, the primary product B that has passed the first stage inspection is fed into the retort machine. The retort conditions at this time are selected from the range of 105 to 125 ° C. and 5 to 30 minutes, for example.
Unlike the case where the cap is screwed into the take-out pipe portion and the opening is closed, in the take-out pipe portion 3d, the protruding portion 3e is integrated with the inside of the take-out port 32 of the take-out pipe portion 3d by the fragile portion 34 and the connecting portion 33. It is connected. Accordingly, even under pressure and high temperature under the above conditions, appropriate pressure and heat sterilization is performed, and there is no concern about liquid leakage associated with retort processing under the cap mounting condition.

When the retort processing is completed in this way, the primary product B is cooled without being capped. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 7, the primary product B is conveyed by the conveyor, and the air 5 is blown as shown by the arrow around the take-out pipe portion 3d. Thereby, the moisture in the gap 7 is blown off and dried. Further, sterilization is performed by a UV sterilizer depending on the type of product.
Next, the primary product B is transported to the capper. In the process from the start of transporting to the capper, the primary product B is laid down or left in the same state as in the first stage inspection. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, a conveyor 6 'for compression is arranged opposite to the conveyor 6, the abdomen of the pouch 1 conveyed by the conveyor 6 is compressed, and an inspection means 8 is arranged immediately downstream thereof. The state of the pouch seal portion and the take-out pipe portion 3d is chucked. This inspection method may be visual or arbitrary for photoelectric scanning, X-ray scanning, and the like. By this inspection, it is determined whether or not an abnormality has occurred due to deformation of the fragile portion 34 or the connecting portion 33 during retort processing, and the occurrence of defective products can be avoided.

Next, the cap 4 is attached to the extraction pipe portion 3d. FIG. 8 shows an example of the cap 4 used in the present invention. Preferably, the entire cap 4 is made of a transparent material. The cap 4 has an internal thread 41 on the inner peripheral wall that is screwed into the male thread 31 of the spout 2, and a ring part 4 a is continuously provided at the lower part of the peripheral wall via several connecting bands (score parts) 42. . The ring portion 4a is intended to prevent natural loosening and mischief of the cap. The ring portion 4a is hung on a collar 30 for locking the spout 2 so that the connecting band 42 is cut off when the cap 4 is loosened. .
In addition, the cap 4 is formed with a stepped portion 43 that can be brought into contact with the upper end surface of the take-out port 32 when the cap 4 is attached to the take-out pipe portion 3d at a position deeper than the female screw 41. As shown in FIG. 8B, a plurality of trailing blade-like ratchets 44 that are bent in the counterclockwise direction and can be engaged with the ratchet 35 of the spout 2 are disposed on the inner peripheral surface that is hung. Further, a protrusion 45 that hangs in the hole of the small-diameter portion 3f of the spout 2 is suspended from the central portion of the top wall of the cap. The protrusion 45 and the small-diameter portion 3f may have an opposite relationship, that is, a form in which the protrusion is fitted around the small-diameter portion.

  In the capper, the cap 4 is taken out and screwed into the pipe portion 3d. At this time, the ratchets 35 and 44 do not work. 9, the female screw 41 and the male screw 31 are not only screwed together, but the protrusion 45 is fitted into the hole of the small diameter portion 3f, and the ratchet 35 and the inner peripheral ratchet 44 are engaged with each other. As a result, the take-out pipe portion 3d is sealed twice, so that the safety is high.

Then, the sealed product B is sent to the boxing line. In the middle of this process, the sealed product B is slightly squeezed in the same way as in the first and second stage inspections, and finally the presence or absence of leakage of the contents A is inspected. . This inspection method may be visual or arbitrary for photoelectric scanning, X-ray scanning, and the like.
Since the moisture that has adhered to the retort process has already been blown by air blowing to the take-out pipe portion 3d, the contents are the contents if there is a leak. When the cap 4 is configured to be transparent, the contents are colored, so if a colored liquid is seen by visual observation or photoelectric scanning, it means that there is a liquid leak, and this is not recommended. Eliminate as a good product. If the cap 4 is opaque, it is detected by scanning with X-rays. With the above, excellent retort food with straw without leaking is manufactured, and those that pass are boxed. Note that the final inspection may be omitted depending on circumstances.

  And when ingesting a foodstuff, as shown in FIG. 11, the cap 4 is loosened and rotated to the side. Since the cap-side ratchet 44 meshes with the spout-side ratchet 35, the rotation of the cap 4 twists the small-diameter portion 3f and the protruding portion 3e, and the take-out port 32 of the take-out pipe portion 3d is opened. Can eat and drink. Since the small diameter portion 3 f is fitted to the protrusion 45, the cut out protruding portion 3 e is directly attached to the cap 4.

In addition, when the weak part 34 is not orthogonal to the take-out pipe part axis and exists at an oblique angle, that is, close to a part far from the mouth end of the take-out port 32 (position far from the ratchet engagement position in the height direction). When continuously changing from the position of the ratchet meshing position to the position close to the height direction, the magnitude of the threading torque changes in the circumferential direction. Normally, when the cap 4 rotates, A strong threading force is applied to the part close to the mouth edge, and a crack enters here and propagates.
For this reason, the weak part 34 can be excised with a small torque, and even a person with weak finger strength can open it easily. Moreover, since the thickness of the weak part 34 can be made into the thickness which can bear pressure heat sterilization by that much, safety | security becomes high.
In addition, since the connecting portion 33 is inclined with respect to the axis, the resistance when the pouch 1 is pressed to pour out the contents gradually changes in the circumferential direction, and the contents are adapted to the inclination. Will be gradually discharged. Therefore, swallowing can be done easily.

12 to 14 show a second embodiment of the present invention.
This embodiment is suitable when the volume of the pouch container is relatively small, the step of preparing the content, the step of sterilizing it, and the step of filling the retort-compatible container with the sterilized content without wearing the spout And a process of sealing, sealing and sealing the container, a first stage inspection process, a retort treatment process, a moisture removal process for the take-out part, a second stage test process, and a cap for the take-out part The product boxing process is performed after the mounting process and, if necessary, the final inspection process.

The first embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the contents are filled without inserting and fixing the spout 2 to the pouch 1. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, the upper portion of the pouch 1 is fully opened or the required range is not sealed, and the nozzle 5 of the filling machine is inserted into the opening 1d for filling, thereby performing filling. Therefore, the viscous content can be filled smoothly.
Second, after filling the contents, the spout 2 is inserted into the filling opening 1d as shown in FIG. 13, and the filling opening 1d is heat-sealed and sealed, and the spout 2 sealing collar is inserted. Heat sealing is performed so as to surround the portion 3a. The structure of the spout 2 is the same as that of the first embodiment, and thus a sealed product B as shown in FIG. 14 is obtained.
Since the process after the sealing is the same as that of the first embodiment, the description is incorporated.

The present invention is not limited to that shown in the examples. For example, the filling portion of the contents in the pouch 1 may be a side portion or a bottom portion instead of the upper portion.
Moreover, this invention contains the invention of the manufacturing apparatus of the retort pouch foodstuff with a straw, and contains the following two aspects.
1) Content preparation equipment, prepared content sterilization equipment, equipment for filling sterilized contents into a retort-compatible container having a spout without cap, equipment for sealing and sealing the container body, and primary product First-stage leak inspection equipment including a pressing means attached to the conveyance line and an inspection means immediately downstream, a retort processing equipment, a moisture removal equipment for the take-out section, and a pressing means attached to the conveyance line for the retorted product And a second stage leak inspection facility including an inspection unit immediately downstream, a cap mounting facility to a take-out portion, a pressing unit attached to a conveying line for a cap-attached product, and a third stage including an inspection unit immediately downstream A series of leak inspection equipment and product boxing equipment.

2) Content preparation equipment, content sterilization equipment, equipment for filling sterilized contents into a retort-compatible container without wearing the spout, equipment for sealing the container, equipment for attaching, sealing and sealing the spout And a first-stage leak inspection facility including a pressing means attached to the primary product conveyance line and an inspection device located immediately downstream, a retort processing facility, a moisture removal facility for a take-out portion, and a retort-treated product conveyance line. A second-stage leak inspection facility including the pressed means and the immediately downstream inspection means, a cap mounting facility to the take-out portion, a pressing means attached to the transport line of the cap-attached product, and an immediately downstream inspection means A series of third-stage leak inspection equipment and product boxing equipment.

In any case, the present invention fills the contents without applying a cap to the spout, so that the contents can be filled smoothly and efficiently even if the contents contain solids or are viscous. it can. In addition, the spout 2 is integrally formed with a film-like closing portion, and a complicated operation of attaching an aluminum foil to the take-out port is not required. Therefore, cost reduction and efficiency can be achieved.
Further, since leakage of contents and sealing quality are checked easily and accurately before and after the retort process, the occurrence of defective products can be reduced. Since the membrane-like closing portion 34 is integrally formed with the spout 2, the retort process can be performed stably without causing the problem of loosening due to heat as in the case of only screwing the cap. And since the cap 4 is mounted for the first time after the completion of the second inspection after the retort process and the final check for leakage is performed before packing, defective products are generated by the triple check before and after the retort process. It becomes possible to make almost none. Therefore, it is possible to mass-produce a hygienic and safe neutral food with a straw.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the manufacturing process of this invention. It is a partial notch front view of the container used for 1st Example. (a) is the elements on larger scale of FIG. 2, (b) is sectional drawing which follows the XX line of (a). It is a partial notch front view which shows the filling state of 1st Example. It is a partial notch front view which shows the seal completion state after filling. It is a side view which shows the state of a 1st step test | inspection. It is explanatory drawing which shows the air blow state after a retort. (a) is sectional drawing of the cap used by this invention, (b) is sectional drawing which follows the YY line of (a). (a) is sectional drawing of a cap mounting state, (b) is a cross-sectional view of (a). It is explanatory drawing of a 2nd step test state. It is sectional drawing which shows the cap removal state for eating and drinking. It is a partial notch front view which shows the state at the time of filling in 2nd Example of this invention. It is a partial notch front view which shows the state at the time of sealing. It is a partial notch front view which shows a seal completion state.

Explanation of symbols

1 Bag-like container (pouch)
2 Spout 3d Take-out cylinder part 3e Protruding part 34 Fragile part 35, 44 Ratchet 4 Cap 5 Filling nozzle 6 Conveyor 6 'Compression means 8 Inspection means

Claims (6)

  When obtaining a retort pouch food filled with contents belonging to neutral food in a bag-like container fitted with a spout that functions as a straw, use a spout with a closed portion integrated with the take-out cylinder and cap the spout. Without attaching, fill the target food from the appropriate place in the bag-like container, seal the filling site and seal the bag-like container, perform the leakage inspection of the contents from the spout before and after the retort treatment, and then A method for producing a retort pouch food with a straw, wherein the take-out tube is capped.   The method for producing a retort pouch food product with a straw according to claim 1, wherein after the cap is applied, liquid leakage from the spout is further inspected. The method for producing a retort pouch food product with a straw according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the spout is attached to the bag-like container before filling the contents, and filling is performed at a portion of the bag-like container where the spout is avoided.   3. The production of a retort pouch food product with a straw according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the spout is filled in the bag-shaped container without being attached to the bag-shaped container, and the spout is inserted into the bag-shaped container and sealed after the filling. Law.   The spout closure is connected to the inside of the take-out pipe below the upper end of the take-out pipe via the ring-shaped fragile portion and extends in the axial direction with a slight gap, and a protrusion having a ratchet on the outer periphery. And the cap forms a ratchet that engages with the ratchet, and when the cap is loosened, the ring-shaped fragile portion is excised and opened, the take-out pipe portion opens, and the excised fragile portion becomes the cap. The method for producing a retort pouch food product with a straw according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the food product is held. The method for producing a retort pouch food with a straw according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the cap is made of a transparent material.

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