MXPA99004768A - Multiflavor gum package including volatile flavor adsorber - Google Patents

Abstract

A chewing gumpackaging system comprising a container (10) that contains a volatile-flavor adsorber (18) and at least two flavors of chewing gum (14a, 14b). The volatile-flavor adsorber prevents the flavors of the gums from cross-contaminating each other by adsorbing the volatile flavor components from each gum while the gum is stored in the package.

Description

MULTI-FLAVOR MASK RUBBER PACKAGING SYSTEM USING A VOLATILE FLAVOR ADSORBATOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to chewing gum packing systems. This invention allows two or more flavors of chewing gum to be packaged in a single multi-unit container without cross-contamination of the flavors. Specifically, a volatile flavor adsorber is added to each container. The adsorber prevents the volatile flavors of the chewing gums from contaminating each other by adsorbing the volatile components of each flavor. The chewing gum is normally divided and formed into individual pieces, such as bars, tablets, balls or the like. The individual pieces are wrapped individually and placed in a multi-piece package for retail sale. Ordinarily, individually wrapped or multi-piece chewing gum packages are further divided into boxes, bags, containers or other containers for retail display. Moreover, multi-unit containers are usually packaged in large receptacles for shipping to distributors and retailers. The usual practice is to pack only a single flavor of the chewing gum in each of these multi-level packaging systems to simplify manufacturing and distribution. Packing individual flavors also prevents cross-contamination by volatile flavor components. However, there are many cases in which it would be desirable to combine chewing gum packages of different flavors in a common container of multiple units (box, bag, container, etc.). In the case of retail units, a multi-flavored packaging system provides retailers with small display units that maximize the variety of chewing gums and minimize inventory and display space requirements. In addition, there are cases in which retail display units are sold in their multi-unit configuration at the retail level. In such cases, the consumer often prefers a variety of chewing gums of different flavors in each container. In the case of shipping containers, a multi-flavor packaging system allows smaller chewing gum shipments of different flavors to be packaged together. This eliminates the need to ship each flavor in a separate package. A disadvantage for the packaging of multiple flavors of chewing gum is that the volatile flavor components of the gums tend to contaminate each other. This cross-contamination produces an inadequate, mixed flavor perception, often called inappropriate flavor, when chewing gum is consumed. Such inappropriate flavors are unacceptable in terms of quality control and consumer acceptance. This problem is particularly acute when more volatile flavors such as fruit flavors contaminate mint-flavored products.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The inventors have developed a system for greatly reducing or eliminating cross-contamination of flavors between chewing gums of different flavors that are contained in a common package. The system comprises adding a volatile flavor adsorber to a container that contains at least two different flavors of chewing gum. The adsorber adsorbs the volatile flavors before they can contaminate the co-contained products, of different flavor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cartonboard tray, overwrapped in plastic containing eighteen rubber packs, and a bag of adsorber inserted at one end of the tray. Fig. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Fig. 1 showing the adsorber powder in the bag, the rubber packs and the rubber pieces in each pack.

Figure 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of a cartonboard tray in which the retail units are bubble packets in cartonboard covers. Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of Fig. 3 showing the bubble packs in the paperboard sleeves, and a layer of adsorber attached to the bottom of the paperboard tray. Figure 5 is a perspective view of a clear plastic container containing individually wrapped pieces of rubber and an adsorber bag that is adhered to the lid. Figure 6 is a perspective view of a cartonboard tray, overwrapped in plastic containing twenty packs of rubber, and a sheet of adsorber inserted between the columns of rubber packs. Figure 7 is a perspective view of a transparent plastic bag containing individually wrapped pieces of rubber and adsorber contained in a bag that is placed in the bag. Figure 8 is a perspective view of a transparent plastic bag forming a hanging bag with a hanging hole on top, the bag containing five rubber packages and a triangular adsorber rod on the bottom of the bag .

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS AND THE PREFERRED MODALITY OF THE INVENTION In the context of this invention, chewing gum refers to both chewing gum and inflatable chewing gum. As used herein, the term "container" includes any package of multiple units, including retail packages as well as shipping containers such as boxes, cartons, containers, and bags. The bags include pre-formed bags as well as sheets of wrapping material that wrap multiple pieces of chewing gum or chewing gum packages, and are sealed to create a package. The manufacturers . of chewing gum and distributors generally do not pack more than one flavor of chewing gum into a single container, because the volatile flavor components of the gums tend to contaminate one another. Cross contamination can produce out-of-tune notes that are unacceptable in terms of quality control and consumer acceptance. Cross contamination is sometimes not a problem when the flavors are compatible, such as when the different flavors are all of the mint variety. However, when the more volatile flavors such as fruit flavors are mixed with mint-flavored products, cross-contamination is particularly problematic.

To overcome the disadvantage of cross-contamination of flavor in multi-flavor packages, a volatile flavor adsorber is either packed with the gum, or incorporated within the container. The volatile taste adsorber adsorbs the volatile taste components of chewing gum, and prevents cross-contamination of the flavors. Chewing gum is normally formed as sheets, bars, blocks, pellets, tablets, and the like. Sometimes the gum has a coating, like hard candy or covered with sugar. However, most of the time the rubber is wrapped in a slightly gas permeable envelope, such as a closed fit, but unsealed sheets of paper / sheet with a band of paper around it. For retail items, chewing gum pieces are often packaged in multi-piece packages. Some common retail packages include multiple individually wrapped pieces, wrapped in sheet metal, paper, plastic or wax paper. Other retail packages include multiple pieces of rubber that are not individually wrapped, but are separated by paper bands. The frequently coated rubbers are not individually wrapped, but are packed in bags or paper, or plastic or metal jets. Sometimes, the rubber parts are packed in plastic bubble packs with a paper, sheet or plastic backing, which in turn is contained in a carton sleeve.

For shipping objects, containers such as boxes, cartons, sacks and envelopes are frequently used. On the other hand, containers for retail display or retail sale may include cartonboard boxes, cartonboard trays sealed with shrink wrap or paper, cartons, containers, bags, bubble packs and the like. Plastics for the bag or wrap include low density polyethylene (LDPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polyvinyl chloride, polyester terephthalate, polypropylene and the like, as well as coextruded and laminated thereof. These plastics can also be coated with, for example, vinylidene chloride homopolymers (SARAN ™), metals, acrylates, silicon dioxide and the like. Acrylic coated polypropylene is currently a preferred plastic for bags and wraps. The containers are made of plastic, glass, metal, and the like. These include dispensers, jars, and the like. Plastic is currently preferred because the consumer prefers a lightweight transparent material. The following figures illustrate, but do not limit, the variety of multi-piece packages, and the variety of forms of adsorber that are encompassed by the present invention. As shown in Figures 1-4, 6 and 8, a container may contain multiple packs of rubber. Each packet of gum may contain a single flavor of gum (or multiple flavors that are compatible with each other), but the container contains packs of at least two different flavors of chewing gum. For example, Figures 1 and 2 illustrate a paperboard tray 10 in a plastic wrap 12. The tray 10 contains three layers of rubber packages 14. Each package 14 is a conventional package containing five rubber bars 20, all of same flavor. Generally, each rubber bar 20 is wrapped in a paper / sheet laminate and surrounded by a paper web. However, the tray 10 contains at least two different flavors of rubber. For example, packages 14a may contain fruit flavor chewing gum, while packages 14b contain mint flavor chewing gum. A sack of adsorber 16 is inserted at one end of the tray. As shown in the cross-sectional view of Figure 2, the adsorber is preferably in the form of a powder 18 contained in the bag 16. Figures 3 and 4 illustrate a paperboard tray 22 wrapped in plastic wherein the retail units are bubble packs 24 of individual pieces of rubber 28 in paperboard covers 26. In this embodiment, the adsorber is in the form of a layer of adsorber 30 gummed to the bottom 32 of the carton tray 22. Figure 6 illustrates a tray of paperboard 40 wrapped in plastic containing rubber packs 42. In this embodiment the adsorber is in the form of a fused sheet 44 inserted between the columns of rubber packs.

Figure 8 illustrates a clear plastic bag forming a hanging bag 52 with its upper portion fused to form an upper hook 54 having a hanging hole 56. The bag 52 contains five packs of rubber 58. Here, the adsorber it is a triangular rod fused of adsorber 60 at the bottom of the bag. As an alternative modality, the upper hook can be a header card attached to the upper part of the bag, with the hole for hanging on the header card. Figures 5 and 7 illustrate containers containing rubber pieces that are individually wrapped. In such containers, each piece may constitute a different flavor of chewing gum, although there will normally be multiple pieces of each of several flavors in each container. Figure 5 illustrates a clear plastic container 34 containing individually wrapped pieces of rubber 36 and a bag of adsorber 38 which is adhered to the lid. Figure 7 illustrates a clear plastic bag 46 containing individually wrapped pieces of rubber 48 and a bag of powder adsorber 50 within the bag. Examples of volatile flavor adsorbed components usable in the present invention include activated carbon, zeolite, vermiculite, sodium bicarbonate, molecular sieves and the like. Of these, activated carbon is currently preferred. As noted with respect to Figures 1 and 2, the volatile flavor adsorber 18 is preferably in powder form to maximize the surface area of the adsorber. The adsorber powder 18 is contained in a gas-permeable gasket, sachet, or bag (hereinafter "bag") such as bags 16, 38 or 50. The bag is then placed or adhered in the multi-unit container with the chewing gums of different flavors. The bag prevents the migration of loose particles of volatile taste adsorber through the container. Loose adsorber particles, although still within the scope of the present invention would give a disarranged appearance to the displayed product. The bag 16, 38 or 50 containing the adsorber is preferably formed of a fabric or sheet of gas-permeable material. Although the material does not allow adsorber particles to escape, their pores or passages will allow air and volatiles to pass freely into the bag and contact the adsorber. A preferred material for this object is made of uncoated spun polyolefin fibers, sold under the trademark TYVEK ™. However, other materials can form suitable bags. Other ways of achieving the object of preventing the loose adsorber from migrating around the container include incorporating the adsorber into one or more of the materials constituting the container, adhering the adsorber to the container with an adhesive as in Figure 3 and Figure 5 , or merge the adsorber into a single agglomerate. An advantage of an adsorber fused agglomerate is that it can take the form of blocks, sheets 44, rods 60, spheres, pellets, slices, flakes, Raschig rings or other structures to maximize the use of space with its designed container. In some cases as in Figures 4-5, the adsorber is preferably adhered to the container. The amount of adsorber material used will depend on many variables such as the size of the container, the amount of product contained, the effectiveness of the volatile flavor adsorber material, the effectiveness of the individual packing barrier materials, the effectiveness of the container barrier multiple units, the relative volatility (or propensity to transfer) of the flavors, the storage duration and the relative susceptibility of the products to remarkable cross-contamination. The variety of gum flavors can include mint, cinnamon, fruits and inflatable chewing gum. Exposure to moisture can also affect the amount of volatile flavor adsorber needed. This is due to the fact that the volatile taste adsorber can also adsorb atmospheric moisture. Therefore, higher humidity than expected and less effective packaging barriers within the container will increase the required amount of adsorber. Well-sealed packages can decrease the amount of adsorber required. As a general guide, two grams of activated carbon in a TYVEK ™ bag is suitable for a 454 gram case of rubber wrapped with polypropylene coated with acrylic.

EXAMPLES Two samples of each of the following were prepared: Control A - Positive Control A standard 18-pack cartonboard, as shown in Figure 1, was loaded with 6 packs of 5 bars each of Wrigley's Spearmint gum, Doublemint and Juicy Fruit. The product was arranged in three layers of depth with each layer composed of two packages of Doubiemint, two packages of Wrigley's Spearmint and two packages of Juicy Fruit, in that order. The tray was wrapped with polypropylene coated with acrylic and heat sealed with envelope folds.

Control B - Negative Control Control A doubled except that all 18 packages were from Wrigley's Spearmint.

Control C - Control not wrapped Control A doubled except that the envelope was not applied.

EXAMPLE 1 Inventive - 2 grams Control A doubled except that two grams of activated carbon in a TYVEK ™ sack was placed between the end of the tray and the Doublemint packs.

EXAMPLE 2 Inventive - 5 grams Example 1 doubled except that 5 grams of activated carbon were used.

Tests Samples of each control and example (Controls A, B and C and Examples 1 and 2) were stored in two conditions - - 29.4 ° C / 70% RH and 29.4 ° C / 35% RH - - for 10 weeks. After storage, samples were developed and blindly evaluated by trained sensitivity panelists. The results, summarized in Table 1, show that the volatile taste adsorber prevents cross-contamination of flavor in the mixed flavor container.

TABLE 1 CROSS CONTAMINATION Control A 29.4 ° C / 70% RH1 29.4 ° C / 35% RH Spearmint fruit notes fruit notes Doublemint fruit notes fruit notes Juicy Fruit without notes without notes Control B (Spearmint) none none Control C (without wrapping)) nniinngguunnoo 2 none2 Example 1 (2g of carbon n)) nniinngguunnoc 3 none Example 2 (5g of carbon) none4 none 1. HR = relative humidity . 2. Panelists discovered a "less clean" taste, although it was not considered flawed. 3. The panelists discovered a difference in texture between the two relative humidities. 4. Panelists found less texture difference between the two relative humidities than with example 1 that used less activated carbon. It should be appreciated that the systems and methods of the present invention are capable of being incorporated in the form of a variety of modalities, only a few of which have been illustrated and described above.

The invention can be effected in other ways without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The embodiments described are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive, and the scope of the invention, therefore, is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the aforementioned description. All the changes that come within the meaning and scale of equivalence of the claims are to be encompassed within their scope.

Claims (23)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION CLAIMS

1. - A chewing gum packing system comprising: (a) a container containing (b) a volatile flavor adsorber; and (c) at least two different flavors of chewing gum.

2. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the container forms a tray and additionally consists of a wrap of plastic, paper, wax paper or sheet metal.

3. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the container forms a box.

4. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the container comprises a metal, plastic or glass container.

5. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the container consists of a plastic bag.

6. The system according to claim 5 further characterized in that the bag comprises a removable bag that has a hang tag.

7. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the adsorber comprises at least one merged unit.

8. - The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the adsorber is in a gas permeable bag.

9. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the adsorber is adhered to the container.

10. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the adsorber is incorporated in the material forming the container.

11. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the adsorber is contained in a gas permeable bag that is adhered to the container.

12. The system according to claim 9 further characterized in that the adsorber consists of at least one merged unit.

13. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the volatile taste adsorber is selected from the group consisting of activated carbon, zeolite, vermiculite, sodium bicarbonate and molecular sieves.

14. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that the volatile flavor adsorber is activated carbon.

15. - The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that each flavored chewing gum is packed in a package of multiple pieces within the container.

16. The system according to claim 7 further characterized in that the merged unit is in a form selected from the group consisting of spheres, pellets, Raschig rings, sheets, blocks, wafers, flakes and rods.

17. The system according to claim 8 further characterized in that the bag is made of uncoated polyolefin fibers spun as they are.

18. The system according to claim 1 further characterized in that a gum flavor is selected from the group consisting of mint, cinnamon, fruit and inflatable chewing gum, another flavor is selected from the group consisting of mint, cinnamon, fruit, and inflatable chewing gum, and where the first taste is different from the second flavor.

19. A chewing gum packing system comprising: (a) a paperboard tray wrapped in plastic, paper, wax paper or sheet metal; (b) a sack of activated carbon in the tray; and (c) at least two different flavors of chewing gum in the tray.

20. The system according to claim 19 further characterized in that the system contains three flavors of chewing gum, each contained within at least one package of multiple pieces.

21. - The system according to claim 19 further characterized in that a flavor is selected from the group consisting of fruit flavors and a flavor is selected from the group consisting of mint flavors.

22. A method for packaging chewing gum comprising the steps of packaging a volatile flavor adsorber and at least two different flavors of chewing gum within a container.

23. A method for packing chewing gum comprising the steps of: (a) packing in a cartonboard tray i) at least two flavors of chewing gum, and ii) activated charcoal which is contained in a gas permeable bag , and (b) wrap the tray in plastic, paper, wax paper or sheet metal.