The invention relates to a production line for in-line processing of food products, comprising a food transport path that successively leads through: a brine unit; a liquid smoke unit; and a transit oven. The invention also relates to a method for in-line processing of food products, comprising the successive process step: moisturising the food products with a brine; moisturising the food products with a liquid smoke; and heating the food products.

Meat that has been treated by a combination of comminution, treatment with alkali and drying exhibits excellent properties for use as a new food ingredient. Dried Functionalized Protein Product is prepared by comminuting meat to a particle size of less than 5 mm; mixing the comminuted meat with water, a food grade acid composition, a food grade alkaline composition, and a food grade salt to form a Functionalized Protein Brine having a pH in the range of from about 4.0 to about 9.5. The mixing is carried out so that the meat is exposed to the acid to cause the pH of the meat to be less than about 5.3 at some time during the process. The resulting Functionalized Protein Brine is dried to form a Dried Functionalized Protein Product. Water can be added to the Dried Functionalized Protein Product to form a Reconstituted Functionalized Protein Formulation.

Meat that has been treated by a combination of comminution, treatment with alkali and drying exhibits excellent properties for use as a new food ingredient. Dried Functionalized Protein Product is prepared by comminuting meat to a particle size of less than 5 mm; mixing the comminuted meat with water, a food grade acid composition, a food grade alkaline composition, and a food grade salt to form a Functionalized Protein Brine having a pH in the range of from about 4.0 to about 9.5. The mixing is carried out so that the meat is exposed to the acid to cause the pH of the meat to be less than about 5.3 at some time during the process. The resulting Functionalized Protein Brine is dried to form a Dried Functionalized Protein Product. Water can be added to the Dried Functionalized Protein Product to form a Reconstituted Functionalized Protein Formulation.

Process and an apparatus adapted to carry out the process steps for producing sausage products, which includes the following steps: Comminuting raw meat with fat, adding seasoning, salt and further additives, mixing in order to produce a raw sausage mass, filling the raw sausage mass into sausage casings or boxes to form encased sausage, first warming and fermenting the formed encased sausage, second warming the encased sausage mass to a temperature of approximately 42° C., immediately subsequently cooling the cooked fermented sausage mass to −1° C. or below with vacuum being applied, and cutting of the dried and cooled encased sausage to obtain a cut and cooled sausage product.

A meat processing unit and method for the production of an extruded meat product lacking a wrapping film and a gelled coating. The processing unit includes an extruder apparatus for a minced meat product with a distribution chamber provided with an inlet opening and with multiple outlet openings of identical section, each one in communication with an extruder head through a distribution duct to produce the extrusion on a conveyor surface movable through an air treatment unit. The outlet openings are arranged equidistant to the inlet opening and in radial symmetry in an annular arrangement, and all the distribution ducts have the same length.

A meat processing unit and method for the production of an extruded meat product lacking a wrapping film and a gelled coating. The processing unit includes an extruder apparatus for a minced meat product with a distribution chamber provided with an inlet opening and with multiple outlet openings of identical section, each one in communication with an extruder head through a distribution duct to produce the extrusion on a conveyor surface movable through an air treatment unit. The outlet openings are arranged equidistant to the inlet opening and in radial symmetry in an annular arrangement, and all the distribution ducts have the same length.

The invention shows a food casing comprising a hose casing and cover plates terminally attached thereto in a liquid tight manner, which cover plates cover the terminal cross-sectional openings of the hose casing. At least one of the cover plates has a filling opening comprising a check valve, which is passable for food mass filled in the hose casing and blocks against the leakage of food mass out of the hose casing.

Adding (a) transglutaminase, and a gluconic acid salt or lipase to a processed meat food product, or (b) transglutaminase, a gluconic acid salt, and lipase to a processed meat food product with a sodium chloride content of 0.1 wt % to 1 wt % or a processed meat food product with a binding agent content of not more than 0.2 wt % affords a processed meat food product with a reduced sodium chloride content or a reduced binding agent content, with a good elastic texture.

An apparatus for co-extruding a liquid around a periphery of a stream of meat as the meat is extruded into a casing includes a collar, a tube end connected within the collar, and a co-axial stuffing tube having a proximal end connected to the tube end. The stuffing tube has concentric inner and outer layers and a longitudinal channel between the inner and outer layers extending from the proximal end of the stuffing tube to a distal end of the stuffing tube. A liquid inlet port in the collar is in fluid communication with the longitudinal channel. Methods include co-extruding the liquid from the longitudinal channel at a distal end of the stuffing tube as the stream of meat is extruded from within the inner layer of the stuffing tube such that the liquid and the meat are not combined until both are extruded into a casing.

Animal trimmings are converted to a finely textured beef product by heating ground animal trimmings to a temperature sufficient to liquefy fat in the animal trimmings and less than a temperature to significantly cook the animal trimmings thereby forming a heated slurry, separating at least a portion of the liquid fat from the heated slurry to form a lean textured beef slurry having a fat content of less than about 30% by weight and adding sodium carbonate to the lean textured beef slurry in an amount sufficient to provide a finely textured beef product comprising sodium carbonate in an amount of from about 0.02 to about 0.1% by weight. Finely textured beef products and mixed meat products comprising the finely textured beef products are also described.