A method of freezing juice includes dispensing a predefined amount of the juice into a container, contacting at least one surface of the container with a mass of cooling agent, having a temperature below 78 C., to cool the juice to a cooled juice temperature between 68 C. and 78 C. The container is configured to, in a first cooling stage, allow heat transfer from the juice to the cooling agent to reduce the temperature of the juice to 0 C. at a rate of between 1 C. and 2 C. per minute, and in a second cooling stage following the first cooling stage, allow heat transfer from the juice to the cooling agent to reduce the temperature of the juice to the cooled juice temperature, at a rate of between 1 C. and 2 C. per minute. The temperature of the juice is then maintained between 68 C. and 86 C.

A process for metering the disposition of a food product into cavities forming a pellet. The cavities are defined in a conveyor as individual cavities. Each cavity defines a specific volume. The process includes supplying a quantity of food product in a supply chamber which includes a plurality of nozzles aligned above the conveyor. The nozzles are aligned with a predetermined portion of the cavities. A predefined supply of food product is dispensed and metered through each nozzle. The food product is dispensed through the nozzles into the cavities without exceeding the specific volume of the cavity. The food product is frozen into an individual quick frozen pellet starting immediately upon disposition in one of the cavities. The step of metering the predefined amount of food product includes metering a predetermined weight of the food product.

A rocker chiller includes a chilling tank and a baffle assembly. The baffle assembly includes a drive shaft, a baffle blade extending along a bottom of the tank and a plurality of spaced-apart and elongate baffle members extending in a radial direction from the drive shaft towards the bottom of the tank. The elongate baffle members contact the drive shaft at spaced-apart locations along the drive shaft and define a plurality of openings therebetween. The elongate baffle members are sized and shaped to push at least a majority of the carcasses laterally through the heat exchanging liquid in a direction generally orthogonal to a lengthwise forward movement of the carcasses from the first end of the tank to the second end of the tank.

A system for supercooling a product is provided, the system comprising: a chamber containing a supercooling medium; and disruptors that emit sound waves, ultrasound waves, and/or electromagnetic waves in the chamber; wherein during a cooling cycle the chamber reaches a cooling temperature below 0 C. and during a warming cycle the chamber reaches a warming temperature greater than the cooling temperature. The supercooling system may be used to supercool perishable products below freezing to extend shelf life and freshness of the products. Other embodiments of the supercooling system, and methods for its use, are described herein.

A method for producing an avocado food product with a reduced instance of pathogens, the method comprising: (a) removing the pip and peel from an avocado leaving the flesh of the avocado; (b) macerating the avocado flesh; (c) exposing the avocado flesh to an atmosphere comprising steam for a predetermined time; wherein the steam is generated at or greater than about atmospheric pressure.

Method for freezing olive oil which achieves the sustaining of the polyphenols until the time of its' consumption. The method is performed immediately after the collection of the fruit olives from the tree, with the addition of nitrogen, the cold extraction of the oil and the remaining of the oil pulp in water of 27 C. temperature at the softening for 30. The product is being transferred in stages at storage tanks with nitrogen supply and gradual at stages reduction of the temperature by 5 C. and remaining in each storage tank for 12 hours until its temperature reaches 6-7 degrees, after which it is being packaged and frozen with slow in stages freeze to 18 0 C to 23 C. Due to this method the product maintains during the whole internal of freezing the colour and aroma and the taste it has during its transformation into oil, organic characteristics that reappear exactly the same after it has been defrosted.

The invention relates to a method for enhancing the product quality and product safety of meat or foodstuffs of animal or vegetable origin by means of selective pressure and temperature treatment. According to the invention, fresh or warm meat of any form is packed in portions using a film container which has recoil abilities and therefore any liquid possibly escaping from the packed product distributes itself uniformly over the surface of the product. The packed portions are then placed in a container-like treatment device which has, mounted on the surfaces coming into contact with the product, a plurality of cushions, tubes or similarly elastic structures to which a pressure and temperature control medium may be applied. The cushions, tubes or similarly elastic structures are filled with the pressure and temperature control medium in such a manner that substantially uniform pressure forces act on the packed product and the packed product can be held in a predefined temperature range which is maintained for a predetermined period. On expiry of the predetermined period, the packed product is then rapidly cooled by exchanging the temperature control medium.

A system for processing pieces of protein includes a freezer unit that receives the protein pieces in an uncooked state and retains the uncooked protein pieces at a temperature and for a time interval to crust freeze the protein pieces to a depth sufficient to impart dimensional stability to the uncooked protein pieces; a packaging machine that receives the protein pieces from the freezer unit and retains the protein pieces in cooking pouches; a batter applicator that deposits a batter made from high-gluten flour in the cooking pouches to coat the outer surfaces of the protein pieces; the packaging machine programmed to vacuum seal the batter-coated protein pieces in the cooking pouches; and a heating unit programmed to sous vide cook the protein pieces in the cooking pouches for a time and temperature selected to completely cook the protein pieces and leave the batter sufficiently tacky to adhere to breading.

Product such as food is chilled or frozen in apparatus in which a chilling zone holds a pool of cryogen vapor, and a belt that carries the product through the apparatus passes through a region in the apparatus that is lower than the upper surface of the pool of cryogen vapor.

There is disclosed a plate freezer apparatus. The plate freezer apparatus comprises a first frame member configured to support a plurality of vertically disposed freezing plate members arranged to define a freezing cavity therebetween and a flooring system configured to extend below the freezing plate members to form a base for the freezing cavities, wherein the flooring system is configured to be raised so as to lift any frozen material present in freezing cavities out of the freezing cavities so that the frozen material extends from the freezing cavities to project above an upper edge of the freezing plate members. A second frame member is mounted above said first frame member so as to extend substantially a length of the first frame member, the second frame member having a plurality of paddle members mounted therein that are individually actuable to extend between a horizontal axis where the paddle members extend substantially parallel with the second frame member, and a vertical axis where the paddle members extend from the second frame member to be received between the frozen material raised from the freezing cavities. The first frame member further comprises a lifting mechanism adjacent a proximal end thereof, the lifting mechanism being actuable to raise the proximal end of the first frame member so as to tilt the first frame member towards a distal end and wherein the paddle members are actuable to facilitate controlled release of the frozen material such that upon release the frozen material is able to slide along the upper edges of the plates and off the distal end of the first frame member for collection.