Tubular sausage casings can be prepared from non-animal materials, primarily starches and flours by film-casting followed by gluing with an edible glue composed of konjac and carrageenan. In this way, it has been made possible to prepare non-animal meat casings commercially, that can be used with conventional sausage production technology.

An improved tubular openwork fabric or net for food products, the openwork fabric including a plurality of filament assemblies. Each filament assembly is formed from one or more filaments and the filament assemblies are knitted as alternating conjoined and intermediate members. Each intermediate member includes a single filament assembly and each conjoined member includes a pair of filament assemblies that are worked together. The openwork fabric further includes an extension limiting member to limit a longitudinal extension of the openwork fabric.

An improved tubular openwork fabric or net for food products, the openwork fabric including a plurality of filament assemblies. Each filament assembly is formed from one or more filaments and the filament assemblies are knitted as alternating conjoined and intermediate members. Each intermediate member includes a single filament assembly and each conjoined member includes a pair of filament assemblies that are worked together. The openwork fabric further includes an extension limiting member to limit a longitudinal extension of the openwork fabric.

The present invention relates to a method for producing sausage-shaped products, like sausages, containing a flowable filling material in a tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing, on a clipping machine having a control unit for controlling the clipping machine, the method comprises the steps of feeding the filling material in a feeding direction into the tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing stored on a filling tube and being closed at the front end by a closure means, like a closure clip, gathering the filled tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing by gathering means arranged downstream the filling tube, for forming a plait-like portion thereto, and placing and closing at least one closure means on the plait-like portion for closing the filled tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing. The method includes the steps of starting the production process, automatically capturing at least one value of at least one parameter of the clipping machine and setting the captured value as the target value for said parameter in the further production process. The present invention further relates to a clipping machine on which the inventive method may be executed.

A shirr-stable, tubular food casing having a glued, permanently elastic longitudinal seam based on a flat fibrous textile material coated with acrylic, collagen and/or a protein derived therefrom is provided. The seam is generated using a reactive hotmelt glue. The glued seam is resistant to boiling for a long time and also exhibits sufficient stability thereafter. Exemplary textile materials include a consolidated nonwoven or spunbonded nonwoven, a woven fabric, loop-formingly knitted fabric, laid fabric, loop-drawingly knitted fabric. To form the casing, the textile material is coated in the flat state. The coated textile material is cut into strips according to the diameter of the casing to be produced and glued using a reactive hotmelt glue, such as a PUR hotmelt glue, to form the tube. The food casing is preferably used as artificial sausage casing or for wrapping cheese or fish.

Edible tubular casings for meats, such as sausages are described. The casings are comprised of reconstituted collagen combined with natural casing material comprising bovine, porcine or sheep gut, or combinations thereof. Methods for producing the casings by forming a gel consisting of a combination of the natural material and the reconstituted collagen are also described.

The present invention relates to a process to obtain a round shaped collagen casing and to the casing obtained by the process, which is based on a post rounding of a straight collagen casing by controlled heat shrinking.

Provided are a paper material for fibrous casing enabling a fibrous casing to deliver favorable performance, a production method thereof, and a fibrous casing employing the paper material for fibrous casing. The paper material for fibrous casing of the present invention is used as a food packaging material in heat processing of a foodstuff, and is formed from pulp as a principal component, with one face being a glossy face and another face being a matte face. The fibrous casing of the present invention comprises: a paper layer that is arranged as an innermost layer and formed from a paper material; and a synthetic resin layer that is overlaid on an outer face of the paper layer, the paper material being the paper material for fibrous casing. The matte face of the paper material is preferably directed inward. The glossy face of the paper material is also preferably directed inward.

Provided are a paper material for fibrous casing enabling a fibrous casing to deliver favorable performance, a production method thereof, and a fibrous casing employing the paper material for fibrous casing. The paper material for fibrous casing of the present invention is used as a food packaging material in heat processing of a foodstuff, and is formed from pulp as a principal component, with one face being a glossy face and another face being a matte face. The fibrous casing of the present invention comprises: a paper layer that is arranged as an innermost layer and formed from a paper material; and a synthetic resin layer that is overlaid on an outer face of the paper layer, the paper material being the paper material for fibrous casing. The matte face of the paper material is preferably directed inward. The glossy face of the paper material is also preferably directed inward.

A low profile water bath co-extrusion process for sausage manufacturing is disclosed, along with machines for accomplishing this process. The process is an automated assembly line which begins with co-extruded food product, such as a sausage emulsion coated with collagen and finishes with cooked, boxed, packaged link sausage. The process includes the steps of co-extrusion, linking and cutting the co-extruded food product to individual links. Following these steps and prior to a liquid smoking step, the casing is prepared by steps which includes chemical treatment of the individual links in a water bath, while dehydrating the product in a salt solution, the water bath being a two-part process and following the water bath using a forced hot air drying step. Machines disclosed include a modification of prior art screw driven water bath and a novel roller/conveyor forced hot air drying assembly that subjects individual links of a co-extruded food product to a rolling motion while simultaneously being transported horizontally and being subject to forced hot air drying.