Method for filling and sealing liquid content in spouted pouch and apparatus therefor

Abstract

[Problems] To obtain a spouted pouch package having a high degree of deoxidation by a method in which even a liquid content which is easily foamable can be filled while being inhibited from foaming.

[Means for Solving Problems] A pre-filling deoxidation step (1) is performed before a liquid content is filled into a pouch. The pre-filling deoxidation step (1) comprises: a vacuum step (1-1) in which a gas is evacuated from the pouch; an inert gas blowing step (1-2) in which an inert gas is blown into the pouch after the vacuum step; and a gas-reduction vacuum step (1-3) in which the gas in the pouch after the inert gas blowing step is discharged under vacuum to reduce the gas in the pouch to a predetermined amount. Thereafter, the pouch is evacuated in a pre-filling second degassing step (2-1) and then filled with a content. After filling, gas replacement is implemented.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention relates to a method for filling and sealing a liquid content in a spouted pouch and to an apparatus therefor, and more particularly to a method for filling and sealing a liquid content in a spouted pouch that is advantageously suitable for filling and sealing a liquid content that is easily foamed and requires high-level deoxidation packaging.BACKGROUND ART[0002]Filling and sealing liquid food products such as refreshing beverages, jelly foods, and high-calorie or highly nutritional rice gruel in spouted pouches has recently been suggested. Among such products, for example, when the content is a low-acidic product that has a pH of equal to or higher than 4.6 and easily decomposes, sterilization at a temperature of equal to or higher than 100° C. is required and retort sterilization is conducted after filling and sealing the liquid content. Furthermore, the spout opening end is sealed by fusing an inner lid sealing material such as an alumin...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0016]With the method and device in accordance with the present invention, oxygen is removed from the pouch before the filling step and the pouch is again degassed immediately prior to filling. Therefore, the inclusion of air into the content or occurrence of bubbles during filling is reduced and the packaging is performed with a high deoxidation ratio and can maintain high quality of the content, in particular such that can easily deteriorate under the effect of oxygen, these deoxidation ratio and maintained quality being superior to those attained with the conventional process in which gas replacement is performed after the pouch is directly filled with the content.

[0017]According to the invention as set forth in claim 2 and claim 9, the pre-filling deoxidation step includes a vacuum step, an inert gas blowing step, and a gas-reduction vacuum step. Therefore, a sufficient amount of inert gas can be blown into the pouch, without affecting the subsequent pre-filling degassing step, the pre-filling deoxidation ratio is high, and a portion that becomes bubbles after filling can be efficiently replaced with inert gas. Furthermore, because oxygen can be removed from the pouch before the filling step, the inclusion of air into the content or occurrence of bubbles during filling is reduced and the packaging is performed with a high deoxidation ratio and can maintain high quality of the content, in particular such that can easily deteriorate under the effect of oxygen, these deoxidation ratio and maintained quality being superior to those attained with the conventional process in which gas replacement is performed after the pouch is directly filled with the content.

[0018]Furthermore, according to the invention as set forth in claim 3 and claim 9, the penetration of external air into the pouch, in

Problems solved by technology

However, because the spout aperture is small, the following problems are encountered: the content overflows during and after the filling operation, the spout opening end and outer peripheral portion are easily contaminated, gas purging is difficult to conduct, high-speed filling is difficult to perform, and high-speed productivity is impossible.

The occurrence frequency of these problems rises dramatically when an easily foamable content is used.

The spout opening is easily contaminated

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