Polymer-Based Sausage Casing

Abstract

A polymer-based sausage casing suitable for use with uncooked meats such as chorizo is disclosed. A polymer resin is blended with a silicon-based barrier control agent, preferably a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane, to increase the permeability of the sausage casing. The resultant blend can be biaxially stretch-oriented to produce a single-layered polymer-based sausage casing suitable for use with uncooked sausage meats such as chorizo, and specifically suitable for the gas and moisture permeability needed during the curing process for uncooked sausage meats. Such polymer-based casings can also be employed for cooked sausages by choosing a silicon-based barrier control agent that increases gas and moisture barrier, thereby increasing shelf-life for unpeeled sausages. A method for improving the peelability of cooked sausage casings by injecting a thin coating of a releasing agent, without the addition of a surfactant, into the sausage casing during the shirring process is also disclosed. The releasing agent is a hydroxypropyl methylcellulose solution that creates a low viscosity releasing agent that effectively improves peelability from any type of sausage casing, but preferably for use with the polymer-based sausage casing of the present invention.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 356,837 entitled “Polymer-Based Sausage Casing” filed on Feb. 3, 2003, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 255,727 entitled “Polyamide-Based Sausage Casing” filed on Sep. 26, 2002, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention is related to a polymer-based casing suitable for encasing cooked and uncooked sausage meats. Artificial polymeric sausage casings must fulfill numerous requirements if they are to be suitable for commercial use. These requirements differ depending on the type of meats that are to be encased. For example, cooked meats, such as traditional sausages purchased from a grocery store, wieners, hams, salamis, and liver pates are inserted into a casing in an uncooked, paste-like form, and are then cooked or smoked in the casing. Depending on the p...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention provides a sausage casing that is made of a single layer of polymer and is suitable for use with uncooked meat. This is achieved by blending a polymer resin with a barrier control agent, specifically a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane, which increases the permeability of the casing. The casing can be used for gas and moisture permeability during the curing process for uncooked sausage meats. Additionally, the invention provides a method for improving the peelability of cooked meat casings by injecting a thin coating of a releasing agent, such as a hydroxypropyl methylcellulose solution, during the shirring process. This results in a low viscosity releasing agent that facilitates the peeling of the cooked meat casing.

Problems solved by technology

Small diameter shirred food casings must be packaged for distribution and sale, and this packaging is critical to commercial performance since the casing has a thickness of from about 20 microns to about 40 microns, and is therefore prone to damage.

The most commercially important drawback is that cellulosic casings are too permeable to moisture.

Also, when printed with more than two colors, ink tends to permeate through a cellulosic casing, thereby contacting and staining the product.

For example, pure polyamide casings cannot be smoked, cannot be effectively peeled either manually or automatically, and do not allow gas to permeate for uncooked sausages that undergo fermentation.

The barrier against water vapor prevents weight loss due to evaporation of water from the contents, which reduces the saleable value of the product.

There are, however, certain types of meats where even the reduced permeability of this two-layer composite casing is too high to be suitable for use.

For example, certain cooked meats severely discolor when exposed to even the slightest amount of oxygen.

Pure polyamide casings have inherently too high a barrier to gases and moisture for this particular application.

The problem with this approach is that the shirred stick that results from such films can be too rigid, and have problems with unshirring prior to usage.

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